Uhuru nominates anti-terrorism man to replace Boinnet

What you need to know:

  • Mr Boinnet said he had made great strides in service delivery, proper housing and a number of reforms he spearheaded.
  • In the reorganisation of the structural command, Mr Boinnet also appointed three senior Administration Police officers to be the Regional Commanders.

President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday nominated Hilary Mutyambai as the Inspector General (IG) of Police following the expiry of Joseph Boinnet’s four-year term early this week.

Mr Mutyambai, who has been serving as Deputy Director of Counter Terrorism at the National Intelligence Service (NIS). If approved, he will serve for the next four years.

The law requires that the President nominates the IG’s replacement within 14 days of the expiry of the four-year term and forward the name of the nominee to Parliament.

Sources close to the President said the nomination of Mr Mutyambai, who comes from Machakos, followed intense lobbying and consideration by the National Security Council chaired by the President himself.

APPOINTEES

In an executive order number 4 of 2019, President Kenyatta also nominated Mr Boinnet as the Chief Administrative Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by Article 245(2)(a) of the Constitution and in accordance with the procedure set out in section 12(2) of the National Police Service Commission Act, the President nominates Mr Mutyambai as the Inspector General of Police,” the executive order stated.

In the same order, the President appointed chairperson Eliud Kinuthia and members of the National Police Service Commission (NPSC); Lilian Mutio Kiamba, Eusebius Karuti, Naphtaly Kipchirchir Rono, Alice Atieno and John Tentemo.

The commission acts as the National Police Service’s employer, and will employ the new IG.

On Tuesday February 19, President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed Mr Kinuthia as the commission chairman to succeed Johnston Kavuludi.

Mr Kinuthia previously worked as the adviser of the National Police Service Transformation.

TERRORISM

According to Article 245 (2) (a) of the Constitution, the IG will be approved by the Parliament after vetting by the National Assembly’s Administration and National Security Committee.

The NPSC Act requires the National Assembly to approve or reject the nominees for the position of IG within 21 days from the date the Speaker makes the announcement.

Mr Boinnet, a career police officer picked from the National Intelligence Service, took over the position from Mr David Kimaiyo; he was sworn into office on March 11, 2015. Security analysts applauded him for the reduced terror attacks on the country.

On Monday, which marked his last day in office, Mr Boinnet sought to release a tally of his own achievements, prominently highlighting police reforms and modernisation of the service.

Mr Boinnet said he had made great strides in service delivery, proper housing and a number of reforms he spearheaded.

ACHIEVEMENTS

The IG outlined these accomplishments while in control of a service that brought the Administration Police and Kenya Police units together under a single command following radical changes introduced to harmonise operations.

The unification of these two services, which were previously rocked by sibling rivalry, has also been applauded by several colleagues as Boinnet’s biggest achievement besides the fight against terrorism and organised crimes.

“He created four specialised units out of the Administration Police (AP) Service. He placed all the officers who were not deployed into the units under General Duty. These are now discharging duties like the other Kenya Police officers. They even have similar uniforms,” the officer said.

The units created from AP include the Border Patrol Unit, the Critical Infrastructure Police Unit or Securing of Government Buildings Unit, the Rapid Deployment Unit and the Anti-Stock Theft Unit.

RESOURCES

In the reorganisation of the structural command, Mr Boinnet also appointed three senior Administration Police officers to be the regional commanders.

The commanders - Rashid Yakub (Western), Vincent Makokha (Nyanza), Paul Soi (Northeastern) and the 17 county commanders drawn from the AP, will now work under the Deputy Inspector General in Charge of the Kenya Police, Mr Edward Mbugua.

Those left to work under the DIG in charge of the Administration Police Service Noor Gabow are now tasked with protective duties.

In the statement on Monday, he added that under the police modernisation programme, the National Police Service invested heavily in providing the necessary tools and equipment to enable police officers discharge their duties effectively and to the expectations of Kenyans.

HOUSING

Mr Mutyambai, if successfully approved by the National Assembly, will also implement the housing allowance.

The proposed allowance has been met with resistance among police officers.

In the same executive order signed by Statehouse Spokesperson Kanze Dena, the President nominated Wycliffe Ogalo as the Commissioner General of Prisons Services, Brig. Vincent Naisho Loonena as the Director General of Kenya Coast Guard Service and Brig. John Migui Waweru as the Director General of Kenya Wildlife Service.