Court declares Maraga taskforce on police reforms unconstitutional

The government has suffered a major blow after the High Court declared the formation of a 23-member presidential task force to review police welfare unconstitutional.

Justice Lawrence Mugambi ruled that President William Ruto's move to establish a national task force, chaired by former Chief Justice David Maraga, was illegal as it violated constitutional provisions.

"A declaration is hereby issued that the decision by the President of the Republic of Kenya to establish the task force on the improvement of terms and conditions, as well as other matters concerning members of the National Police Service and the Kenya Prisons Service, and to confer upon it specific roles that fall under the mandate of the NPSC, is unconstitutional, null, and void," the judge ruled.

The judge also ruled that, since the task force is unconstitutional, any decisions or actions made by it are likewise invalid.

"I concur with the petitioner and there this court suspends the operations of the task force and the gazette notice that established it," Mugambi ruled.

The decision comes after Nakuru-based medic Dr Magare Gikenyi moved to court in 2023 to challenge President William Ruto's decision to establish the task force to review the welfare of police officers.

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He argued that the president usurped the role of the National Police Service Commission(NSPC), and therefore, the task force was illegal and unconstitutional.

Dr Gikenyi says the work is constitutionally a mandate of the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) and not ‘politically and executive-initiated taskforces.’

“It is the NPSC that is supposed to establish the said task force and not the President. The President can establish any other task force but not the task force on independent commissions,” Gikenyi argued.

He has also contended that the constitution does not envisage a situation where the President directs the working of an independent commission, in this case, the NPSC.

He has termed the act of the president unconstitutional, saying there has been duplication of roles.

“One wonders why the Attorney General is establishing a task force when we have the NPSC, which is supposed to do the same work. This action is irregular and irrational, to say the least,”

He argues that the actions of the state will lead to outright abuse of political power and loss of public confidence.