The Senate Tuesday approved the nomination of Douglas Kanja as Inspector General of National Police Service.
The development follows recommendation by a joint committee of parliament that vetted Kanja last week.
The National Assembly’s National Administration and Internal Security and Senates’ National Security committee said Kanja is fit for the job.
“The committee, having considered the suitability, competence, experience and integrity of Mr Douglas Kanja following the approval process and into considerations its observations and findings, and pursuant to provisions of the constitution, Public appointments (Parliamentary Approval), the NPS Act…,” a report by the joint panel states.
“…the National Assembly standing orders and Senate Standing Orders, recommend that parliament approves the nomination of Kanja for appointment of Police IG,” it adds.
He will now be sworn in before he goes back to his work.
The Senators heaped praised on him as an experienced police officer.
However, the lawmakers challenged him to implement reforms and change the image of the National Police service that has been riddled with corruption and brutality.
“We want the police under article 245 to do their job with professionalism,” Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei said.
Kitui Senator Enoch Wambua said: “As we wish Kanja well in the service, we want to remind him of a few things. Following the enactment of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, the police force then was changed into a service and under that service, we created the office of the IG of Police,” Wambua said.
Nominated Senator Crystal Asige asked Kanja to ensure that he and the NPS comply with court orders.
“I hope the new IG will take note of the court ruling that has pronounced itself clearly about using live bullets, about police in civilian clothing and masked officers,” she said.
Asige added, “These kind of things cannot continue in the Republic of Kenya, we’re not a banana republic and I hope this will be prioritized by the new IG.”
Nyamira Senator Okongo Mogeni asked the IG designate to reverse the trend where police officers arrest suspects while masked.
“Why should the police arrest people while hiding their faces? Are they thugs? Anybody arresting me, I should be able to know who that person is, I should have a right to inform my lawyer. I want Kenyans to be arrested the way Senator Mandago was arrested,” he said.
With the senate’s endorsement, Kanja now awaits approval by the National Assembly to become the country’ s new IG.
Kanja is expected to take over as Kenya’s Inspector General of Police.
Nominated to be Kenya’s next Inspector-General of Police by President William Ruto, Kanja had gone through committee vetting and is only awaiting parliamentary approval before he occupies the top office at Jogoo House.
As the IGP, Kanja will be Kenya’s highest-ranking police officer and will be in charge of both the Kenya Police Service and the Administration Police Service.
Kanja had been acting in the position following the resignation of previous IGP Japheth Koome before he left it to Gilbert Masengeli.
A career police officer, Kanja has risen through the ranks, having joined as a constable on July 15, 1985.
Hailing from a humble family in Nyeri County, Kanja was the first in his family to ever serve as a police officer.
Growing up, Kanja always dreamed of being a uniformed officer.
After his secondary school education, Kanja attended the 1985 police recruitment exercise in the then Nyeri District.
During the very competitive exercise, Kanja impressed the recruiters and was hired on the spot.
After the training at Kiganjo, the young Kanja’s first posting as a police officer was in Lokichoggio, Turkana.
“My desire and dream were always to be a police officer,” he said.
“That is why I worked with diligence and great passion in the service for almost four decades.”
Due to his discipline and work ethic, Kanja rose through the ranks to reach the top office at Vigilance House.
Kenyans still fondly remember his heroics during the Dusit Hotel terror attacks.
On January 15, 2019, gunmen associated with the al-Shabaab terrorist group attacked the DusitD2 Hotel complex in Riverside Drive, Nairobi.
Armed with AK-47s and wearing load-bearing vests, the terrorists opened fire, killing several innocent bystanders.
As an operation commander, Kanja led Kenya’s response to the attack, managed to contain the terrorists, and rescued scores of civilians trapped within the complex.
Kanja was also in charge of the Boni Forest operation, where he led his team to tremendous success in reducing terror incidents there.
A diligent police officer, Kanja then served as the GSU Commandant, where he ensured his officers succeeded in their operations across the country.
As an outstanding public servant, Kanja says one of his lowest moments in his career was when he went to Wilson Airport to receive the 11 bodies of his officers who had been killed during an IED attack in Liboi in 2021.
Another sad day for him was when he received the bodies of officers killed in the Napeitom attack in the North Rift Region.
Kanja is also a firearms specialist and has previously served as the Police Service Chief Armourer.
In his four decades as a police officer, he served in Nairobi, Coast, Eastern and Rift Valley, among other regions.
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