300 disciplinary appeals pending at police agency
National Police Service Commission (NPSC) will hear and determine over 300 disciplinary appeal cases involving police officers.
NPSC chairman Eliud Kinuthia said 447 appeals were lodged before the commission’s appeal committee by officers who felt disillusioned with the manner their cases were handled.
Out of the appeals, Kinuthia said about 50 cases have been dealt with and officers reinstated to service after they were cleared.
He said plans are underway to start attending to the officers’ appeals at the regional police commands with a view of reducing the time taken to hear and determine such cases.
The move, he noted, will ease incidences of stress among police officers.
“The workload in attending to these appeals is low and that is why we want to see how to cut the value chain by way of dispatching our commissioners to go to every region and prepare reports for the officers.
This will go a long way in eliminating cases of officers’ disciplinary issues taking long to be determined,” he said.
Kinuthia said the commission is concerned with the health of police officers and welfare issues, noting that many officers have developed mental problems associated with what they go through in the line of duty.
“The commission has received views and comments from officers that some things are not going right as far as their welfare is concerned and they would want them to be fixed,” he said.
Kinuthia spoke when he presided over the launch of special medical board to assess officers injured in the line of duty in Kisumu yesterday where he assured that the commission is keen to addressing all cumulated health issues with the aim of enhancing the police officers service delivery.
The ongoing medical assessment, he said has reached about 700 police officers who have been assessed in Nyanza, Rift Valley and Nairobi regions.
He was accompanied by the commission vice chairperson Alice Otwala, Nyanza Regional Commissioner Magu Mutindika and the police service commissioners.
Mutindika regretted that police officers continue to silently suffer from medical issues.
He stressed the need to look on and improve the welfare of the uniformed officers, saying this will enable to enhance their service delivery.
“This initiative is for a worthy course because for a long time the medical welfare of our officers who are serving in this region and other parts of the country has been wanting.
We need to make sure that they are working in very friendly environment in terms of housing and other related issues,” he said.
