Police recruitment to resume in September after three-year freeze, IG of Police Kanja announces

The National Police Service will recruit new officers in September, ending a three-year freeze on enlistment caused by financial constraints, Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja has announced.

Speaking on Sunday, Kanja said the exercise will help address a shortage of 5,000 officers and move the service closer to the United Nations’ recommended police-to-population ratio of 1:450.

“We expect the recruitment exercise to take place around September or October. Remember, for the last three years we haven’t enlisted new officers to beef up our numbers as we aim to attain the United Nations’ recommended ratio of 1:450,” Kanja said.

The last recruitment was conducted in 2022, with officers graduating the following year. During the three-year pause, many officers left the service through dismissal, resignation, retirement or death.

Kanja noted that police are currently overstretched, dealing with a range of challenges including cattle rustling, banditry, terrorism threats, homicides, carjackings, violent robberies, human trafficking, drug trafficking, smuggling and traffic offences.

He warned that without adequate personnel, resources and tools to combat these crimes, the impact of police work is often limited.

In efforts to seal corruption loopholes, the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) has developed a digital recruitment system.

“We have undertaken all necessary steps to ensure the next recruitment is conducted digitally. This will help seal corruption loopholes within the recruitment process,” NPSC Chief Executive Officer Peter Leley said.

According to Leley, the Police Recruitment System is a secure, digital platform designed to transform how officers are enlisted.

However, Kanja explained that the new system will not be used in the upcoming recruitment as it must undergo further procedures before roll-out.

“We shall not use the digital system; it has to go through public participation, including benchmarking, if necessary, before roll-out to get everything right,” he said.

Last Thursday, Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo urged young Kenyan men and women to take advantage of the opportunity once the recruitment dates are officially announced.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen had hinted at a raft of changes for the upcoming recruitment, aimed at eliminating corruption, ensuring fairness, and restoring public trust in the process.

Speaking to community leaders in West Pokot County, Murkomen said the reforms will cover several stages of the recruitment process, bring in new stakeholders and extend the recruitment period.

To curb malpractices, he noted that all recruitment activities will end by 4:00 pm. Murkomen cited past complaints of successful candidates being unfairly removed or asked for bribes disguised as “medical letters.”

He noted that medical tests will no longer be conducted at recruitment venues but instead at police training schools, where officers conducting them will not be in direct contact with applicants.

“This will not only reduce the temptation for those involved in the exercise to ask for bribes, but will also ensure fairness,” Murkomen said.

Independent observers, including religious leaders, civil society groups, and community representatives, will also be present at every recruitment centre to monitor all stages and verify results.

“Tukisema tunataka observers, tunataka kuona bishop hapo, civil society na representatives wa jamii. Wao wataona huyu kijana amekimbia vizuri na amekuwa number one, huyu amepita,” Murkomen said, adding that this will curb manipulation where successful candidates are replaced by others.

At the end of the exercise, the names of successful applicants will be posted at each recruitment centre.

The process will also be spread over several days, up to 10 or 20, instead of a single day. Murkomen said the extended schedule will create a gradual and transparent process, giving applicants a fair chance and reducing opportunities for bribery.

“We will do the recruitment this time over 10, 20 days, no problem… there’s no rush this time so that people can get a fair share of those being recruited,” he said.