Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has announced that his administration is moving to operationalise the County Policing Authority, a long-stalled structure created under the National Police Service Act, as part of efforts to curb insecurity in the capital.
Sakaja said the County Public Service Board has been tasked to implement Section 41 of the Act, which establishes the authority but has remained dormant since its passage.
“This authority is provided for by Section 41 of the National Police Service Act but it has never been brought to life, and in Nairobi you need that, especially a metropolitan kind of force. So we’re working on that,” he said.
The County Policing Authority is designed to coordinate and enhance security functions at the county level while promoting community policing. It is mandated to set priorities for police performance, monitor crime trends, assess progress on security goals, and provide oversight on the authority’s budget.
It is also meant to offer a platform for public participation in county policing and evaluate how the police perform within the county.
The authority will be chaired by the governor and include representatives from the National Intelligence Service, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, and members nominated by the county assembly.
At least six other members will be appointed by the governor from key sectors, including women, youth, religious groups, and persons with special needs.
Although the law was passed years ago, county policing structures have not been actualised nationwide. President William Ruto directed in January 2023 that the authorities be set up to allow counties to work alongside the national government on security matters.
“We shall operationalise the County Policing Authority for county governments to join the national government in dealing with security matters in each county,” Ruto said during the 49th passing out of GSU recruits in Embakasi.
In November 2022, Sakaja and then Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome agreed on the formation of the authority, but it stalled. The renewed push comes amid concerns about rising crime in Nairobi, particularly muggings, theft, and robberies in the Central Business District.
Sakaja said the situation has improved since the county and police launched an operation that uncovered vandalism of the city’s lighting system, which criminals were using to aid attacks.
“What we are doing is restoring the lighting that is vandalised, which is driven by criminal elements because we want a vibrant city. We are monitoring it [the situation] together with the regional police commander [George] Seda, OCPD central and county commissioner [David] Wanyonyi,” he said.
He added that the county has asked police to step up patrols and reinforce the anti-vandalism unit with armed officers. “Some of our officers were attacked and stabbed as they tried stopping those vandalising lights on Outering Road,” Sakaja revealed.
On his recent impeachment scare, the governor dismissed it as a closed chapter. He said they had reached an understanding to focus on tackling the challenges facing the city.
