IG has power to hire police officers, Appeals Court deals blow to NPSC

The Court of Appeal has handed Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja a major win in a row over who, the IG or the National Police Service Commission (NPSC), has the power to hire constable police officers and control the Sh60 billion payroll.

In their judgment, Court of Appeal Judges Patrick Kiage, Jamila Mohammed and Jessie Lesiit unanimously found that the law is clear about the independence of the IG, as the head of the police service and does not mention NPSC as an agency responsible for Kenya’s internal security.

The bench headed by Justice Kiage was of the view that it would be ironical for the IG to command and be held accountable for persons he does not have a say in hiring.

“ It is inconceivable that a civilian body such as the Commission would have the capacity to train persons in the Service and convert them from being civilian “Nongwes” (novices) into well-oiled security machines, highly professional and competent capable of direct compliance with orders which could place them in harm’s way as they deal with criminals who may be armed, and ready to lay down their lives for the protection of the nation and the population against internal and external threats to Kenya’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, its people, their rights, freedoms, property, peace, stability and prosperity and other national interests as stated in Article 238(1) of the Constitution,” the three judges ruled.

They dismissed NPSC’s claim that the IG’s role is limited to command.

The case stems from the Employment and Labour Relations Court (NPSC). In the case, former Kilome Member of Parliament Harun Mwau claimed that NPSC has no powers to manage the police payroll or conduct recruitments.

He argued that instead, the commission can only recruit its own staff, who are civilians, while the IG is mandated to recruit police officers.

His lawyer Macmillan Ouma argued that NPSC is not a security organ, hence cannot control payroll and other functions which are set out exclusively for the IG.

“ The NPSC is not a national security organ. Its recruitment mandate under Article 246(3) is distinct and applies only to civilian human resource positions within the NPSC, not to sworn members of the Service whose recruitment falls under Article 238(2)(d). This separation preserves operational security, ensures recruitment is handled by those with functional and operational competence, and protects sensitive processes from unnecessary civilian intrusion,” argued Ouma.

Kanja, who heads the National Police Service (NPS), has been at loggerheads with the commission he sits in over handing over payroll and other functions.

In their argument, NPSC, which is chaired by Dr Amani Yudo Komora, argues that payroll is a Human Resource issue that should be under them, while Kanja has argued that it is an operational issue that should be handled by him.

In a separate case, the Attorney General, Dorcas Oduor, backed Kanja, saying the commission has no powers over payroll and recruitment.

NPSC is made up of civilians and former officers; Kanja sits in the commission alongside his deputies Gilbert Masengeli and Eliud Lagat, as well as Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin.

Oduor’s decision to back Kanja was revealed in submissions by state counsel Jackline Kiramana in a recently withdrawn case that had been filed by lawyer Shadrack Wambui and lobby group Sheria Mtaani.

In the case, Wambui had sued IG Kanja, NPS, AG, with NPSC and the Law Society of Kenya as interested parties.

In her response to the petition, Kiramana said that Wambui and Sheria Mtaani were misrepresenting the law.

“No provision in the Constitution expressly assigns payroll management or financial administration to the Commission. The Commission’s role is to set policy on human resources, not to handle the day-to-day financial ledger of the police.”

Kiramana added that payroll administration underpins promotions, transfers, and discipline, all areas constitutionally protected as the domain of IG under Article 245(2)(b).

“Displacing the IG’s control of payroll would upset the balance of authority and compromise the chain of command within the Service,” she argued.

Wambui, in his petition, had stated that payroll management should be part of NPSC’s human resource mandate and that it had the right to determine how much police officers earn in remuneration and benefits.

The recruitment was to kick off on Friday (today).

However, Justice Wasilwa ordered that the IG, the NPSC, the Attorney General and the National Security Council should respond to the case and appear for a hearing on October 21, 2025.