APs moved to Kenya police as chiefs' camps turned to posts

Mihango Chief’s camp in Embakasi East. Such camps will now be turned to modern police posts. [File, Standard]

More than 23,000 Administration Police Service officers have been moved to the Kenya Police Service in mass changes that will see all chiefs’ camps in Kenya turned into modern police posts.

The 23,900 officers will now be under sub-county commanders popularly known as Officers Commanding Police Division (OCPD).

The changes were announced by the National Police Service Board, which sat last Wednesday.

The affected personnel have been directed to return their jungle uniforms to their respective commanders and would be issued with the new blue one.

Deputy Inspector General of APS Noor Gabow handed over the affected personnel’s instruments to his KPS counterpart Edward Mbugua during the meeting.

The next phase of the changes will see the moved personnel being reintegrated into the system to allow them work well.

And to reduce wastage, it has been resolved that most of the 3,200 leased police vehicles will be available for patrol following the Presidential directive to reduce wastage

The changes affect more than 3,600 chiefs’ camps in Kenya.

Further, all the country’s 1,520 wards will have police stations to be manned by an Officer Commanding Station (OCS), while the current constituencies will also have police divisions to be served by sub-county police commanders formerly known as OCPDs as part of efforts to devolve services across Kenya.

Already, all Administration Police Service camps at chiefs’ offices and those not near police stations are being transformed into police posts, following the President’s September 13 directive to merge police units.

The new changes started with the change of the command structure, with the collapse of parallel commanders for the APS, Kenya Police Service (KPS) and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI). The parallel commanders were all of the same rank, making overall command challenging.

It means that if you walk into a chief’s camp, you will find all government services there.

The chief will be present and if your case needs police attention, an officer in charge of a post or patrol base will attend to you.

The camps will have a holding cell and will handle all cases professionally.

Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho said the cost of implementing these changes is not an issue because it is a process and not an event.

Most of the APS who remained will be in charge of Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit.

“CIPU is mandated to protect electricity, banks, government buildings and installations, water points and cash in transit. Others are critical infrastructure and energy infrastructure,” Gabow said.

All Anti-Stock Theft Unit KPS officers have been moved to APS.