Oshana Police Commander Sakaria Lungameni has appealed to citizens to allow law enforcement officials to carry out their duties without harassment.

Commissioner Lungameni's comments come after a video circulated on social media where an officer was seen throwing a young man in handcuffs into a police van.

It was at Gwashamba mall in Ondangwa where police were attending to a call of children who were selling goods on the street, and according to Commissioner Lungameni, 30-year-old Teofelus Nimengombe obstructed the officers while they were busy carrying out their duties.

"The individual came in and started questioning the police, telling them to stop, that they should leave these people alone, and using abusive language towards the officers, so as a result he was arrested, and don't get me wrong, under no circumstances are we saying that the image you have seen is appealing; what we are saying is that people should allow the police to do their work."

The Inspector General of the Police, Lieutenant General Joseph Shikongo, has on numerous occasions called on officers to limit the use of force and has called on his subordinates to de-intensify situations by educating civilians.

The National Police Spokesperson of NamPol, Deputy Commissioner Kauna Shikwambi, described the behavior of the officer in the video as 'unbecoming' saying officers, during their training, receive intensive practical training on how to deal with situations such as these.

In the meantime, Nimengombe made a brief appearance before the court on charges of crimen injuria that were laid against him by the police and was granted bail of N$500.

Nimengombe later filed charges against the officer, but nbc News was unable to determine when the officer will appear in court because Lungameni stated that police internal investigations are still ongoing.

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Emil Seibeb