Across the world, over centuries, the behaviour of some of the police officers has caused dire repercussions. Sometimes this happens due to excessive use of force or simply wrongful application of the law and policies, but majorly this occurs as a result of impolitel interactions between the two parties.

Incident in the Park shows how city dwellers, hawkers and loafers find themselves in conflicts with the police over flimsy and petty reasons often ending unpleasantly. When the two constables accost the fruit peddler, he gets startled and confused. They demand for his licence and identity card which he obviously doesn't have. Then he offers five shillings which doesn't seem good enough as one constable shrugs. This means that at times if the offer were attractive, they would have accepted it and left him.
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The police refuse to listen to the fruit merchant and harshly shove him along the street to the city telling him he will explain to the judge. This complicates matters even more because the fruit- seller fears the judge more, It throws him into more panic as he has a case that is coming up the following week and the judge is a "tyrant". He explains further that he is selling this time so that he can afford a fine but all his entreaties fall on deaf ears They remain unimpressed saying nothing until he breaks away and flees into the crowded city.

The situation escalates when the constables chase the fleeing man shouting for help from the passers-by. They actually betroth him unto the mob. A city man intercepts him and anotherman lunges for him as shouts increase. Tossed here and there as a suspect, the desperate fruit peddler stumbles and falls into a ditch, No one seems to care to find out what really is happening before taking action. No one listens as he pleads for mercy, This is where he meets his Verdict' which is death. According to the crowd, 'justice' is administered. The mob universally condemn him without plausible evidence.

​By the time the police arrive at the scene, it is too late. Their action is irreversible and fatal. The mob has already killed him for being a "thief". They who are supposed to ensure public safety and security have aided the killing of a hardworking hawker by their silly mistake. This should not have happened if they had treated the man politely. An innocent life is so unnecessarily lost. This makes the public lose confidence in the police. after investigations the truth will come out and it will be hard to trust the police.

​In a nutshell, wanton conflicts and deaths of innocent citizens could be averted if the police handled matters with courtesy and sobriety.

1. The description of the city park in August afternoon. (p6 - 7).
2. Two idlers' dialogue at the pond. - 10).
3. An ambush by two city constables in the park ending in violence.
4. The fruit merchant condemned unheard. (p 12).

The incident in the park, by Meja Mwangi, is a contemporary episode set in the city park and its environs where most citizens, hustlers and workers, spend most of their time as an Outdoor recreation centre. We know it is the popular Uhuru Park in Nairobi through its vivid description.

Metaphorically described, the park is seriously affected by the drought in August. there is a dirty lake at its base, and to the west, up the hill, a cathedral, modern fortresses and ministerial Offices overlooking the park below, and across it is the city itself. A highway, Uhuru highway, separates the park from the city, and on it, there is heavy traffic. In the east, parliament and two city clocks are seen.

Therefore, the park provides a relaxing haven (chilling point) and a source of solace for the misplaced, lost Or frustrated masses flocking the city daily. This has attracted many people. including peddlers trying to make ends meet and idlers killing time here. The city hungry office workers also buy cheap snacks during the lunch hour and return to their stations. Others rush down to River Road to buy chips and roast meat as the loiterers watch the Spectre in a jiffy.

Soon, the park is left With a few idlers and peddlers. Under the slightest shade lie men sheltering from the scorching sun. Watchers watch rowers paddling, reacting to the maxim that spectating is the next best thing to participating. A loafer keeps dropping debris to the fish pond despite the warning inscription on a board. Another man joins him, and a dialogue ensues, and they share a cigarette.

An incident erupts when two city constables demand to see the licence Of the ice cream man and a fruit seller. The Old man helplessly searches and realizes he doesn't have it. Worse. he has no identity card, so he offers the five shillings he has, for he fears the judge and going to jail. He begs for forgiveness, offering all the fruits in vain.

On seeing they are unimpressed, he flees to find refuge in the crowded city, and the cops chase him. He is nabbed by a man on the highway and eventually falls into a ditch. There, the poor man is condemned unheard of for being a 'thief'.

• What is the significance Of the title Incident in the park?
• What is ironic about the two constables' behaviour at the park?
• ​How else do the people spend time at the park?

With evidence from the text, discuss the urban problem that leads to the destitution of the masses.
How does the city's jobless population escape their wretchedness?
Compare and contrast the city workers and the jobless masses.
What are the harsh realities of city life and the illusion of a better, promising life?
How does the rural-urban influx affect people's lives?
What does the presence of butts, used matches and stubs at the park tell you?
How does the lack of identity cards and license affect peddlers?
Juxtapose the kind of identification the police demand from the fruit vendor and one that awaits him at the mortuary.
Referring closely to the fruit-seller show how the mob and the legal system administer justice.
Why does the merchant resort to flight and fight for his life instead of overcoming his fright for the justice system?
Who is to blame for the death of the fruit-seller, the constables, the public, or the
vendor himself?
What lessons can be taken from the incident at the city park?
What does the fruit seller's mention of the 'tyrant judge' tell us about the justice system?

Urban population growth, driven by migration and searching for jobs, has become a significant issue in cities like Nairobi.

However, the masses end up frustrated due to a skills mismatch in the labour market, dwindling economy and poor governance. But every now and then, a misplaced person rose with a start... (p7).

In a few seconds, the thousand or so strong swarm had been swallowed up by the yawning concrete jungle... (p7).
Urban poverty is also witnessed as many remain loitering and idling reminding the park loungers just how many hours they had wasted lying idle.' (p7).

​'A shaggy thin man sat under a shrub...' (p7). ' hairy loafer' (p8). ' The idler seated on the bank...' (p8) torn trouser legs.' (p8) 'horny toes. (p9L

There is also evidence of poor hygiene. The park is littered with debris, cigarette ends and butts. (p8,9). The two gentlemen share puffs on the cigarette. One offers a full cigarette, and smoking in this zone could be a form of escapism from their poverty. (p10).

The fruit seller has only ten shillings which he offers to the constables to spare him. He cannot afford to pay for the licence, or even the fine has on another case. (pl 1).

• When the two constables accost and demand licences from the ice cream man and the fruit peddler, they tell the merchant that he will only explain to the judge.​
• The fruit seller already has a case and is trying to sell to afford a fine. (pl 1). The fruit seller pleads with the constables, who say nothing. 7hefruit seller cursed them and their wives and children... (PI 1).

• The fruit seller is lynched unknowingly by the park people. By the time the constable ran up, the fruit-peddler lay like a broken and twisted ragdoll at the bottom of the ditch. (p12)
• He cries and pleads for mercy in vain.. had drawn thick red blood over the sparsely bearded face. Dead' was his verdict (p12)
• The word 'thief' hovered over the assembled crowd. mob universally condemns him, and it is impossible to tell from which mouth the condemnation is issued. (p12)
  
• Ironically the mob had had what was right. Justice fairly quickly and completely administered ... (PI 2).

• He is a poor old man who sells fruits at the park. He has no licence or identity card. (pl l)
• He is a responsible man as he remembers he has a family which depends on him when accosted. I have a wife and children and... (PI 1).
• He is hardworking because he sells fruits (two baskets) to earn his living despite being unable to afford a license. (PIL)
• He is afraid and fearful that he will be fined or be castrated by the tyrant judge. (pl

• What figures of speech does the writer use to describe the park and events in the park?
• Why is it ironic for the fruit peddler to flee from the constables and lose his life?

• Explore the use of dialogue in Meja Mwangi's Incident in the Park.

• Urban centres are riddled with frequent conflicts with innocent Citizens. Discuss the truth of this assertion based on Meja Mwangi's Incident in the Park. (20 marks).

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