Former Chief Justice David Maraga has published the complete report of the National Taskforce on Police Reforms after President William Ruto failed to release it nearly three years after receiving the document.
The move follows an ultimatum Maraga issued last week. The retired top judge had challenged President Ruto to fulfill his constitutional obligation by making public the report delivered to State House on November 16, 2023. Maraga warned that if the executive failed to act, he would release the document himself.
Taking to social media on Monday, the Chief Justice Emeritus shared access to the long-awaited findings.
“Fellow Kenyans, here is the link to the Report of the National Taskforce on Improvement of the Terms and Conditions of Service and Other Reforms for Members of the National Police Service, Kenya Prisons Service and National Youth Service, widely referred to as the Maraga Taskforce report: https://maragareport.filedrop.me/s/policereforms,” Maraga wrote in a post on X on Monday.
During a press briefing on the same day, Maraga demanded the full implementation of the taskforce’s recommendations for Kenya’s security sector. He pointed out serious inconsistencies in how officials have handled the proposed changes, pointing to the unveiling of new police uniforms on Friday as a key example.
Maraga criticized the uniform rollout, stating that opacity and corruption already shadow the initiative without addressing any urgent reform priorities in the service.
Maraga Raises Fresh Questions Over Kanja, Amin
He also challenged the leadership of the security forces, asserting that Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Director Mohamed Amin occupy their offices illegally after exceeding the mandatory retirement age for public servants.
Maraga argued that President Ruto’s administration improperly extended their tenures past the 60-year age limit. He pointed directly to the Public Service Act of 2017, which sets statutory retirement at 60 and restricts contract extensions strictly to instances where the public service lacks rare, specialized skills.
“The law on age was bent. Section 81 of the Public Service Act, 2017, retired public officers at 60. Section 82 allows a contract extension only for rare skills the service cannot find,” Maraga said.
“What rare skills do they hold that other senior officers do not? Neither were they chosen by open competition? And the result is that they both occupy their offices illegally.”
Maraga Accuses Ruto of ‘Capture’
Beyond tenure extensions, Maraga accused the current administration of side-stepping the structural recommendations outlined by his task force and breaching key legal frameworks. The presidential hopeful argued that police appointments no longer follow merit or transparency standards, charging that the Security Law Miscellaneous Amendment Act of 2014 stripped away core safeguards governing security hires.
“That is not reform, it is capture. The task force equally called it so and termed it unconstitutional (the Act). It demanded the fresh vetting and appointment of officers from the rank of senior superintendent of police. That request was ignored,” he said.
Maraga maintained that the president should not hold direct control over senior police appointments, nor should the selection of the DCI chief rely on executive discretion. He stated that these irregular appointment processes have encouraged national security agencies to act with political bias.
“Look at the harvest. Organized political violence and partisan policing in Homa Bay and Ol Kalou. Blood in churches in Kisumu, Nairobi, and Witima, all under the president’s watch and for obvious political benefit,” he said.
Warning of severe risks as Kenya approaches the 2027 General Election, Maraga called for an immediate, total overhaul of national security organs. He urged the government to implement all task force recommendations in full, restoring merit-based competition to rebuild public trust and strengthen national security.
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