Parliament has flagged concerning inner wrangles between the National Police Service (NPS) and the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) over overlapping mandates between the two entities.
The matter was raised when the two entities met with the National Assembly Committee on Implementation of the Constitution on Tuesday, ahead of the recruitment of 10,000 police constables following a hiring freeze.
Chaired by Suna South MP Caroli Omondi, the committee warned that the ongoing wrangles could fracture the integrity and unity of the police service.
As such, the committee resolved that it would conduct further consultations with key stakeholders before making recommendations to the House so it can issue a definitive stance to ensure mandates of each of the entities are clear.
Key to these disagreements was the alleged allocation of funds for new police recruitment to the NPS, instead of to the NPSC, which is in charge of human resources as per the constitution.
The commission believes that this could effectively sideline it's independent mandate to oversee recruitment processes.
Article 246 establishes the NPSC as the body mandated with human resource management within the police service, including aspects like recruitment, appointments, promotions, transfers, disciplinary control, and oversight of training standards and curricula.
On the other hand, Article 245 of the Constitution mandates the Inspector General of Police with the operational command of the NPS, including the implementation of policy decisions, coordination of police operations nationwide, and the deployment of officers below the rank of Superintendent.
Payroll Control
The two entities are also in dispute over the control of the payroll and other overlapping human resource functions, with the IG maintaining that relinquishing this function would erode his authority over police operations while the commission insists that this function falls under its mandate.
Years after a freeze on police hiring due to differing opinions in the recruitment process between the uniformed and non-uniformed members of the commission, the recruitment was announced earlier this month.
During a presser after IG Douglas Kanja and the commission met on September 6, the NPSC chair Amani Komora revealed that they will be adhering to new regulations laid out in the National Police Service Commission Recruitment and Appointment Regulations Act, 2025, for the recruitment.
Most notably, among the provisions of this Act is the online application of prospective recruits before the countrywide field exercise, another matter of contention between the two entities.
However, IG Kanja said the service would welcome the move, stating, "I welcome the commission's decision to commence the recruitment of 10,000 new police constables. This initiative could not have come at a more critical time, when the service members are dwindling due to several issues."
