Ruto’s task force on police reforms declared unconstitutional
The court found that the president overstepped his authority by unilaterally creating a 23-member task force chaired by former Chief Justice David Maraga. As a result, any decisions or actions made by the task force are invalid.
The High Court has ruled that President William Ruto’s move to form a national task force to review police welfare is unconstitutional.
The court found that the president overstepped his authority by unilaterally creating a 23-member task force chaired by former Chief Justice David Maraga. As a result, any decisions or actions made by the task force are invalid.
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Addressing the issue in court on Thursday, Justice Bahati Mwamuye noted that the president’s appointment of the task force duplicated the functions of the independent National Police Service Commission.
“The president cannot, under the disguise of executive powers, take functions of an independent commission and vest them in a task force. It is unlawful and unconstitutional,” Mwamuye ruled.
The ruling comes after the High Court had already taken a strong stance against similar moves by suspending other presidential task forces recently.
The task force, set up in December 2022, was charged with assessing the welfare of police officers and reviewing their terms and conditions of service.
It was mandated to identify legal, policy, administrative, institutional, and operational challenges in the National Police Service and the Kenya Prisons Service.
Among its proposals were measures to increase salaries for officers under the homeland department and recommend two entry points into the National Police Service at constable and cadet levels, with details to be determined by the National Police Service Commission.
This latest decision marks yet another setback for President Ruto. Previously, the court ruled against his assignment of the Police Reforms Taskforce to Maraga, noting that the president cannot remove the independent commission’s functions through executive action.
In related decisions, the High Court suspended the operations of the Presidential Taskforce on Human Resources for Health on February 6. It declared the Presidential Taskforce on Health Audit unconstitutional on March 6, finding that both had unlawfully taken over functions from their independent bodies.
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