A new police unit has been created to help chiefs conduct village operations.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen Friday January 24 unveiled the National Government Administration Unit (NGAPU) in Kwale.
This came amid opposition from a section of police officers who deemed the move illegal.
Insiders say the plans are part of efforts to claw back the powers of the chiefs which were scrapped under the 2010 Constitution.
NGAPU is under the APS and is the newest unit in the service.
The main functions of NGAPU will include support National Government Administrative Officers (NGAO) in the management of security and the execution of their duties and responsibilities in all Administrative Units.
They will also provide security and support to NGAO in the execution of their functions, especially in the maintenance of law and order and provide protective security to Government premises.
Further, the personnel will assist in the enforcement of national policies, laws, and regulations provide security during high-risk operations conducted by NGAOs such as land disputes, regulatory enforcement, campaign against alcohol and drug abuse and provide security during public functions including barazas.
They will also conduct functions of apprehension of suspects and preservation of exhibits, support NGAO in conflict management and peace-building initiatives and collaborate with other law enforcement agencies to address incidents requiring coordinated efforts.
They will ensure compliance with national directives that involve public safety and protective security and implementation of any other lawful orders as may be directed by authorities.
The Unit Headquarters are situated in Nairobi and subsidiary Formations are to be found at Regional, County, Sub County, Divisional and Locational levels.
NGAPU is the latest unit in APS. APS has several other units dedicated to various functions.
APS has formed units that include the Special Weapons and Tactics (Swat) team, the Camel Unit, Rapid Deployment Unit, Border Patrol Unit, APS Stock Theft Prevention Unit and Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit.
Under BPU, there are AP Special Forces that comprise the Special Recce Team (SRT), the Special Operations Group (SOG), the Camel Calvary Team as well as Swat.
The move came through after Deputy President Kithure Kindiki in 2022 announced plans allocate five police officers to each chief in the country.
Kindiki said that all 3,950 chiefs and their 9,043 assistants countrywide would be allocated the officers in a bid to foster law and order in their governance.
“We are working towards reorganising ourselves between the National Government Administration Officers (NGAOs) and the police to ensure, as it was before, that every chief has police officers attached to them to enable them to be able to enforce law and order,” Kindiki, then CS for Interior said.
He said the government would empower the Chiefs and support them while striking a balance to ensure that the country does not return to the era of all-powerful and notorious administrators.
This, he said, would be done by providing all administrators including commissioners with mandatory service charters outside their offices and work plans in order to inject competence and discourage them from engaging in partisan politics.
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