President William Ruto has lauded the police force for improving the nation’s overall security and reaffirmed his commitment to seeing to it that the government implements the necessary measures in an effort to actualize the financial independence of the National Police Service.
As he presided over the country’s 59th Jamhuri Day celebrations, Ruto insisted that the country’s security could be maintained without infringing on people’s rights and freedoms.
He also praised the police for keeping the country secure without torturing or kidnapping members of the public.
“I, therefore, commend the entire national police service, from the constable on the beat to the Inspector-General, for the enthusiasm with which they have embraced the changes and enhanced our general security through increased vigilance and improved relationships with citizens and their communities,” observed Ruto.
The president asserted his success in reorienting all policing operations towards more compassionate approaches to dealing with crime and holds that operational independence of the police is essential for its effectiveness, professionalism, and accountability.
In order to help police officers fulfill their duties, the President also committed to establish a task team to review their terms of employment.
“Before the end of the year, I will be appointing a task force to review the terms of the police service,” Ruto claimed.
As he hinted that a new policing paradigm is on the horizon and the possibility to achieve a high sense of security for the people and observe their rights and freedoms to the greatest extent, Ruto indicated that the police have now moved away from “heavy and illegitimate reliance on illegal and extra-judicial interventions to a consensus solution finding.”
The statesman expressed optimism in achieving a higher level of security for every Kenyan while at the same time observing their human rights and freedoms with new approaches to policing and noted that the illegitimate reliance on illegal and extrajudicial interventions frequently entailed highly intolerable violations like kidnapping, torture, disappearance, and murder.
Since he took office, the President has been at the forefront of implementing changes within the men and women in uniform.
He first pledged to make the office of the Inspector-General of Police independent by transferring the budget from the President’s Office and appointing the police chief as the accounting officer to support the police service’s eventual financial independence.
One of the main concerns the President has considered is security reforms, which have resulted in the disbanding of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations Special Unit, departmental transfers, and the arrests and arraignments of several security agents.
