Police officers forced to change stations soon.

 Photo: standardmedia.co.ke

Police officers who have overstayed in their current stations may soon be moved.

This is after Inspector General Joseph Boinnet reportedly demanded details of officers who have stayed at one station for more than three years.

The directive affects all ranks – from the lowest (Constable) to highest (Assistant Inspector General) within the National Police Service (NPS) comprising Kenya Police Service, Administration Police Service and Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI).

There has never been a clear policy on transfers. Instead, there exists a generalised cap, a three-year limited arrived at by a committee looking into the transfer issue.

But the three-year limit is widely ignored, with some officers overstaying in their stations. Corruption, nepotism, cronyism and tribalism are said to be rampant and largely determine whether one stays in a station or is transferred.

Some officers allegedly bribe to remain in one station or get transferred to ‘lucrative’ ones. The same applies to those enjoying close ties with their immediate superiors. In some stations, officers are reportedly left to languish for years, especially if they are considered non-core stations.

The IG’s directive has been greeted with anxiety and excitement, depending on which side of the coin an officer finds himself or herself.

An OCPD however said he doubts whether tangible changes will be achieved, claiming that transfers have been turned into vendetta for settling scores, with officers being frequently victimised.

“There are advantages and disadvantages in carrying out the audit, but at the end of the day, nothing will come of it, as long as those who caused the mess in the first place are still in charge. I can give you a list of many of my colleagues who have quit over the last one year for being transferred on flimsy grounds,” he said.

 

-Hudson Gumbihi