New rules unveiled ahead of promotion of 3,500 officers
National Police Service Commission (NPSC) yesterday issued a raft of regulations to guide the promotion of at least 3,500 officers from the ranks of Constable to Chief Inspector.
Interviews are scheduled to start today. Officers picked for promotion will undergo a six-month training first.
It has, however, emerged that a section of the officers have raised concern, saying that some of the qualification requirements are discriminatory.
Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai has directed that the results of the interviews be communicated to the headquarters by end of November.
Officers will undergo the trainings at the National Police Service Training colleges in Kiganjo, Embakasi and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in South C, Nairobi County.
A senior officer from the police headquarters has, however, denied reports that some officers, especially those who joined the Kenya Police Service from Administration Police (AP) Service, had been discriminated against, especially on the requirement that the eligible officers must have passed all police law examinations.
Under Section 34 of the Service Standing Orders, AP officers are required to sit for three exams –Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code, and the Evidence Act –while their counterparts sit for five papers.
“It is not discriminatory. AP officers who have sat for at least two of the three exams will be eligible,” a senior officer told People Daily yesterday.
Some AP officers have also complained that they were turned away because of the law exams. There were 24,000 officers who joined KPS from APS in new changes.
According to the NPSC’s career guidebook titled “Career Progression Guidelines for National Police Service Personnel”, all police officers must take special courses before they are promoted.
Commission has said it is seeking to end the trend of haphazard promotions by providing a well-defined career progression structure that will attract, motivate and facilitate retention of competent personnel.
New structure provides a clearly defined job description and specifications, with delineation of duties and responsibilities at all levels.
Under the new guidelines, a police officer must have served for at least three years in one rank before promotion.
And as part of efforts to streamline career progression in the service, all Constables with university degrees will be considered.
They must have, however, scored a mean grade of C+ (plus) or those with below the mark must have proof of bridging certificate.
Commission developed 19 sub-schemes of service to guide the career progression of technical personnel who wish to join the police in specialised fields such as clinical officers, nurses, medical engineers, radiographers among others.
