The National Police Service (NPS) is mulling on the possibility of introducing a heavy fine targetting recruits who quit the service before serving for 10 years.
In a move to recover the money budgeted for the whole recruitment and training exercise, police intend to fine dropouts up to Ksh1.2 million.
Speaking on Thursday, March 17, Naftaly Rono - a Senior Commissioner of Police, noted that the fine will serve as compensation to the national government on the budgetary allocation in the recruitment exercise.
Defending the move, Rono noted that joining the service should be guided by passion and motivation, bearing in mind that the government invests heavily in the recruits.
"Let it be clear to all recruits who will be joining the service, do it if it is your passion and not a hobby, if a police officer thinks of leaving the service, they will be expected to pay the government Ksh1.2 million, an investment the government has done on an individual officer," remarked Rono.
The Commissioner, who was speaking at pre-recruitment clinic in Kerugoya, Kirinyaga County, however, advised those with underlying health conditions to keep off from the recruitment exercise.
"We have lost recruits during training period due to undisclosed illnesses, if there is any recruit with underlying issues, let him keep off since their lives are more important than this job," Rono stated.
Machakos County Police Commander, Issa Mohammud, reiterated the need to sensitise the youths before joining the service, arguing that it is expensive and most of them quit after 2 years.
"One should make an informed decision before joining the Police Service, that is why this sensitization for the youth who are potential candidates is crucial. We no longer want to lose manpower because some are employed and exit service after two years yet their training was expensive," Issa stated.
The Inspector General of Police, Hillary Mutyambai, has, however, not issued an official communication on any fines for recruits who drop out in less than 10 years after joining the service.
The current recruitment is expected to bring on board 5,000 recruits targeting form four leavers with a mean grade of not lower than D+ (plus).
Rono further noted that the government was considering lowering the entry grades for recruits from disadvantaged areas.
"Last year we did not have a single slot for women, the reason was that we needed men who would join the General Service Unit (GSU), Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) and the border patrol unit," Rono explained.
