NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct, 7 – It’s a sigh of relief for 1,233 Graduate Police Constables after the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) said that it would honour a court ruling to reinstate their salaries after it had unjustly been slashed.
In a statement, NPSC said that it had withdrawn Circular No.1 of 2021 dated December 23 2021, and the Commission letter dated November 17, 2021, that directed the stoppage of salary increment for 1,233 Graduate Police Constables in the National Police Service (NPS).
“This is in compliance with the Court order issued on 29th September 2022, declaring the stoppage of upgraded salaries from job group J to F, arbitrary, unreasonable, and unlawful,” read a section of the statement.
Further, the Commission has advised the Acting Inspector General of Police, Kenya Police Service Deputy Inspector General, and the Acting Director, Directorate of Criminal Investigation to pay the 1,233 graduate Police Constables and Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO’s) a salary of Inspector of Police equivalent to job group J, backdated from November,1,2021, the day the salary was stopped, without the loss of any benefits.
The commission dispatched a letter to the NPS with the directive on October 3, 2022.
The Commission is expected to issue a revised Circular that will serve as a guide on the matter.
Back in April, former Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai and National Police Service Commission chairperson Eliud Kinuthia was in danger of being cited in contempt of court for disobeying orders staying a move to reduce graduate officers’ salary.
Three graduate police officers sued the IG and NPSC chairperson for slashing their salaries without proper justification.
The officers affected by the November 17, 2021 order by the Deputy Inspector General of Kenya Police were constables who had earned a promotion to the position of Inspector of police after graduating with undergraduate degrees.
The graduate officers were moved from Job Group J to F.
In their short-lived salaries under the inspector rank, the officers said they used to earn a monthly salary of Sh57,300, a house allowance of Sh24,950, a Sh4,000 commuter allowance, and a risk allowance of Sh11,000.
This only lasted until October 2021 when their pay was reduced to amounts earned by police constables; a junior grade, just below the rank of inspector.
Police constables earn a monthly salary of Sh31,000, a house allowance of Sh14,300, a risk allowance of Sh9,000, and a commuter allowance of Sh4,000.
They moved to court challenging the move but despite a stay, the officers continue to earn a monthly salary of a police constable.
The Judge, in his ruling, termed the move by the IG and NSPC chairperson as “open, blatant, and willful defiance of the court orders…”
He pointed out that, “the Court is not prepared to engage in flexing of muscles between itself and the ever endowed executive, on which Courts relies on to have its orders implemented.”
He said if the interim court orders were being disobeyed, “there cannot be any useful purpose for the court to give audience to a party who is only prepared to obey the Court orders if they are made in its favour.”
The Judge said the court must be “steadfast” in ensuring that the “low and the mighty give deference to its orders and obey them without exception.”
“This is not done to uphold the Integrity of the Judiciary or the Court or even the personal ego of the presiding Judge. Neither is about preserving and safeguarding the rule of law. A party who walks through the Justice door with a court order in his hand must be assured the order will be obeyed by those to who it is directed,” he asserted.
The case was filed by three officers identified as Ayub Gikonyo Mathenge, Mbusiro Christine Dorothy, and Robinson Kipkorir Cheruiyot.
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