Immediate Press Release

High Court declares appointment of County Police Commandants Illegal

Nairobi, March 27
th
2014/..The High Court of Kenya on March 27, 2014 has delivered a
judgment clarifying the powers of the Inspector General of Police to appoint, transfer and/or
promote police officers in the National Police Service.
This judgment was pursuant to judicial review number 226 of 2013 challenging the
appointment of 47 county police commandants filed by International Center for Policy and
Conflict (ICPC) in July 2013.
In his judgment, the High Court Judge Justice George Odunga held that:
1. THE office of the Inspector General of Police has both constitutional and legal powers to
assign and/or deploy police officers to perform a specific duty in any part of the country
on temporary basis whenever need arises. However, such an assignment or deployment
cannot and must not be construed to imply substantive transfer and/or promotion of an
officer to an office or a station in the National police service by the office of the
Inspector General of Police. The effect of this judgment is that it is inaccurate for the
Inspector General Police to make claims that his hands are tied in addressing security
matters in the country.
2. THE purported transfer and/or promotion of police officers as County commandants or
other recent transfers by the Inspector general of police are null and void. This is
because, according to the court ruling, the powers to appoint, promote, transfer and
create officers in the National Police Service, is the preserve of the National Police
Service Commission (NPSC). Therefore the inspector General has no legal powers and
authority to make unilateral decisions in human resource management in the National
Police Service.
3. Any law or an Act of Parliament that purports to give powers of transfer, promotion,
and/or appointment in the National Police Service to the office of the Inspector General
of Police is null and void to the extent of its inconsistent with the Constitution.
4. The National Police Service Commission has constitutional and legal powers under the
Constitution and National Police Service Act 2011 to create offices. Further, it has the
legal mandate to proceed and competitively and transparently recruit officers within the
service, transfer and/or promote officers to fill various positions in the national police
service as provided for in the structure of National Police Service Act 2011.
5. The process of removal of the Inspector General of Police from office is the prerogative
of the National Police Service Commission.
Ends/.

Signed
Ndungu Wainaina
Executive Director