NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 18 – President William Ruto will on Wednesday preside over the official launch of the Strategic Framework for the Implementation of Reforms in the National Police Service, Kenya Prisons Service, and National Youth Service.
The event which will take place at Nairobi’s Kenya School of Government will be attended by senior government and security officials.
The recommendations, presented to President William Ruto by the task force led by former ChiefJustice David Maraga in November 2023 seeks to enhance the welfare of the country’s security personnel.
The recommendations included logistics, mobility, and equipment to be used by the National Police Service, the Prisons Service, and the National Youth Service (NYS) in a bid to enhance their work and streamline service delivery to the public.
The report identified specific issues such as political interference in the National Police Service (NPS), corruption in employment and promotions, police training curriculum, an inadequate National Police Service Commission (NPSC), the role of the Cabinet Secretary responsible for National Security and structure of the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) in the police.
The launch follows the recent gazetting of members for the Technical Committee tasked with overseeing the implementation of the security reforms recommended by the Maraga-led task force.
The Technical Committee on the Review and Development of Legislative and Policy Reforms for the NPS and the National Youth Service (NYS) will be chaired by Kepha Onyiso, with Musita Anyangu serving as his deputy. Charles Otieno has been appointed as the Technical Advisor to the committee.
“IT IS notified for general information of the public that the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration has appointed the Technical Committee on review and development of legislative and policy reforms for the National Police Service and National Youth Service (hereafter referred to as “Technical Committee),” read the gazette notice in part.
The committee includes Marion Muriithi, Seth Masese, Seko Brenda, Olivia Simiyu, and Buhere Jay Sikuku from the Office of the Attorney General, as well as James Nombi and Susan Kamau from the Kenya Law Reform Commission.
Maurice Okoth, Rogers Marindi, and Dickson Magosti from the Internal Security Office are also part of the team.
Joint Secretaries of the committee are Peter Karanjah, Charles Ismail Otieno, and Judith Chebet Koech from the National Police Service Commission (NPSC).
Additionally, Festus Kinoti (Independent Policing Oversight Authority), William Kailo Munyoki (Government Chemist), Nicolas Makokha (National Youth Service), and Humphrey Young (State Department for Correctional Services) will serve as Joint Secretaries.
The committee’s terms of reference include analyzing policy and legislative reforms as proposed in the Report of the National Taskforce on Improvement of the Terms and Conditions of Service and other Reforms for Members of the NPS and NYS.
They are also tasked with reviewing and providing legal advice on reform proposals, drafting various Bills for submission to the Attorney General, and formulating policy proposals.
The Ministry of Interior has since disclosed that it will require a financial injection of approximately Sh108 billion over the next four years (2024-2028) to successfully implement the proposed reforms.
