Court declines to halt prisons recruitment amid claims of discrimination against serving officers

The Kenya Prisons Service (KPS's) recruitment scheduled for Tuesday, April 30, will continue as planned after the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC) declined to stop it as sought by two activists. The KPS is seeking to hire cadet officers, professionals, technicians and artisans.

But activists Peter Agoro and Henry Muriithi say the recruitment process is tainted with discriminatory, unconstitutional and unfair labour practices that violate the rights of the serving prison officers.

The activists argue that the intended KPS recruitment will violate the rights of serving prison officers who hold academic qualifications and experience but are being overlooked and despised by their employer.

They say KPS has more than 600 junior officers in its workforce who hold university degrees and experience, but their employer has failed to prioritise them, and they are being bypassed.

"There is a real and present danger that the intended recruitment by the KPS, under the impugned advertisement will cause irreversible damage to the morale, rights, and career progressions of affected officers and result in waste of public resources by recruiting external candidates for roles that can be competently filled by current personnel," the activists say.

"The criteria set by (KPS) for promotion of serving graduate officers are manifestly irrational, punitive and discriminatory, requiring a master's degree and at least 10 years of service whereas civilians joining at the same rank only need a bachelor's degree with no experience, which offends the constitutional principles of equity and meritocracy."

The KPS will on Tuesday recruit degree holders who have not worked anywhere as cadets to take them for the inspectorate's course and hire them as prison officers in the rank of inspector.

Serving prison constables and non-commissioned officers in the ranks of corporal, sergeant and senior sergeants received a memo on April 11, 2025 informing them that they must possess a master's degree and must have served for not less than 10 years to qualify for positions of inspector of prisons.

"The same positions (of inspector) are being offered to external candidates who are only required to have a bachelor's degree, with no service experience required," states the two activists in their petition.

"The petitioners have brought this petition as a public interest petition and also to the hundreds of affected officers who are unable to do so themselves due to fear of state-sanctioned victimisation."

Angoro and Murithi accuse the Commissioner-General of Prisons, Patrick Aranduh, of violating Articles 27, 41 and 232 of the constitution by promulgating policies and practices that discriminate against serving graduate officers.

They have sued Aranduh alongside the Principal Secretary for Correctional Services and the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Interior, telling the court that if the three are not stopped, they will be emboldened to continue perpetrating arbitrary, discriminatory and discriminatory practices.

Justice Hellen Wasilwa certified the matter as urgent but did not issue orders stopping the recruitment.

She directed that the application and petition be served to those sued in the matter and the parties, KPS, CS for Interior and PS for correctional services, among others, must respond within 14 days.

The case will be mentioned on May 20 to confirm compliance with the directions.

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