President William Ruto has announced that Kenyans will receive national identification documents (IDs) at no cost.
This is a departure from the initial government directive that required Kenyans to part with Ksh300 for new applications and Ksh1,000 for renewals.
Speaking during his fourth day working tour of Nairobi County at Ayany in Kibra on Thursday, the president announced that all government registration agencies should comply with the directive.
Further, the president directed that no Kenyan should be subjected to any form of questioning that might be deemed discriminatory based on their backgrounds during the application of the crucial documents.
''I have said that matters of ID be issued without any discrimination. Every citizen should be given an ID card without discrimination,'' Ruto asserted.
''I want to announce here at Kibra that IDs should be issued without any payments and with a plan that is free from any sort of discrimination,'' he ordered.
Ruto issued the directive following an initial appeal that was made to him during the rally by Kibra Member of Parliament Mwalimu Peter Orero, who had requested him to address the plight of thousands of Nubian community members who had missed out on the document due to the stringent requirements.
The MP asked the President to issue the directive and, in turn, order the gazettement of the same following a similar order he issued on ID applications in the porous North Eastern region.
However, the directive is expected to elicit mixed reactions from the public and leaders who have in the past expressed concerns over Ruto's 'roadside policy declarations.'
Charges on ID cards have been an issue of concern to Kenyans, who have in the past raised objections to the government's inclusion of rates on applications and renewals.
Politicians, including People's Liberation Party of Kenya leader Martha Karua, have in the past faulted the government on the charges, claiming it was a plot to lock out thousands of youth without employment from voting in the 2027 elections.
In May 2024, the then Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki gazetted the revised charges that mandated Kenyans to part with Ksh300 for new applications and Ksh1,000 for renewals.
