Police outline new curriculum, qualifications for recruits

By Cyrus Ombati

You will have to endure longer and more intensive training if you want to become a police officer.

According to a new curriculum, 10 per cent of the recruits have to be university graduates.

The new group of recruits to join the forces in May will undergo 15 months training for constables, while cadets will be in college for 21 months. These include a compulsory three-month internship, which has been introduced. Previously, training took nine and six months for the two groups respectively.

The recruits will be required to have a mean grade C plain in KCSE up from D plain.

"The mean grade will be C except for places where there will be none. That, however, has to be exceptional for the recruits to be taken and the issue of gender has to be observed," said Internal Security Minister George Saitoti when he launched the curriculum at Kenya Airways Pride Centre, Nairobi, Monday.

Officers will be trained in management, research methodology, judicial procedure, information security management, psychology, cyber crime, customer care, human rights, security and safety in general.

new code of conduct

Commissioner of Police Mathew Iteere and AP Commandant Kinuthia Mbugua said the current curriculum is fractured and cannot meet the demands of the public.

Prof Saitoti said the process of training 656 instructors to support the implementation of the new curriculum had started.

The first group of 7,000 recruits will join on May 2 for a 15-month training course at both Kenya Police College in Kiganjo and Administration Police College in Embakasi.

The minister said they have reviewed the police Standing Orders, finalised the new code of conduct and reviewed the recruitment criteria.

He said four bills — National Police Service Bill, 2010, Independent Policing Oversight Authority Bill, 2010, National Police Service Commission Bill, 2010, and Private Security Industry Regulation Bill, 2010, are with the Constitutional Implementation Commission and would strengthen the legal and institutional framework of the forces’ operations.

Security PS Francis Kimemia said they expect to recruit 14,000 individuals into the police force by December next year.

He said the advertisement on the recruitment exercise will be published in national newspapers this week.

Mr Kimemia said 4,000 will be for AP and the rest for police because the latter lacks capacity to handle a larger population.

He said the recruitment is intended to supplement the police population ahead of the 2012 General Election where security agencies anticipate an upsurge in crime.