Mounting unpaid debts ground police cars, posing threat to security

The police fleet is facing a crisis, with vehicles stalling nationwide due to the government's failure to pay for maintenance and fuel. As a result, officers are now dipping into their personal funds to keep a limited number of vehicles running, endangering the National Police Service (NPS) ability to maintain law and order. Across the country, police operations are faltering as service providers suspend maintenance services over unpaid bills, making it hard to track criminals or stop crime, which they would done to save lives and property. All units - the Administration Police, Kenya Police, General Service Unit, Directorate of Criminal Investigations and intelligence services - have been forced to ground their vehicles at a time when petty crime is on the rise. In an email sent on November 12 last year by a service provider instructed their staff to immediately cease maintenance of NPS vehicles under Phase II and Phase IV contracts. The email directed employees to "discontinue the provision of maintenance services until advised otherwise." Efforts to reach police spokesperson, Resila Onyango, for comment were unsuccessful as she declined to respond to questions. According to the email, 107 police vehicles across the country are currently out of service. This includes vehicles used by the DCI and intelligence services, which, though often registered as civilian vehicles, remain government-owned. Individual officers are now shouldering the cost of repairs. "The vehicles are still not being maintained to date," said one officer. Recover payments "My vehicle was being serviced when the directive came, so I had to pay for the repairs myself." Some service providers have resorted to detaining police vehicles to recover owed payments. A prominent vehicle servicing company has reportedly withheld vehicles since October 11, 2024, due to non-payment. "Fuel cards for leased vehicles were suspended last year due to non-payment. There are many problems in the police service," an officer told The Standard. "The government owes us millions. We are torn between speaking out and losing contracts," said one service provider. While the full scale of the crisis remains unclear, senior police officers commanders have acknowledged the severity of the situation, with some even funding police station operations from their own pockets. "Maintaining police vehicles has not been resolved," said one officer. "When maintenance comes up, we have to pay out of our pockets or we cannot respond to crimes. ''This week, I spent Sh15,000 to buy engine oil and an oil filter. The vehicle will cost me Sh40,000 today. I told my boss, but he isn't concerned." Another office lamented that the government's indifference continues because operations continue despite the crisis. "As long as things are moving, the bosses in Nairobi are not bothered. Sadly, the public doesn't understand, and we can't explain the situation." Commanders voiced growing frustration, emphasising that paying for vehicle repairs personally is unsustainable. " Some officers are spending their own money to maintain the vehicles. We are running out of resources," one said. The crisis began as early as September 8, 2024, when fuel cards for police-leased vehicles were suspended, leaving officers stranded. "It's frustrating to be on duty without working vehicles or fuel," said an officer. In January 2023, after President William Ruto took office in 2022, it was announced that the police budget would be moved from the Office of the President to the Office of the Inspector General to reduce political interference. He said 1,000 vehicles will be acquired for the police under the leasing programme in an effort to alleviate the shortage of transport at police stations across the country.

Mounting unpaid debts ground police cars, posing threat to security

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