The State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services has rolled out three new guidelines to streamline the vetting process for applicants seeking identification cards.
This move comes in response to growing controversy following the announcement that the vetting process for individuals in border regions had been abolished.
The new guidelines aim to ensure a more transparent and efficient process for all applicants.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the guidelines include using the family tree to trace the families of the applicants to establish if they are Kenyans.
The second guideline will ensure chiefs and assistant chiefs have electronic gadgets for the biometrics of the applicants to help in the process.
The government officials will also do the registration in schools where teachers will be used to identify genuine applicants.
“The ministry has developed guidelines on the vetting of applicants for IDs. This brings to an end the over 60-year discrimination Kenyans from Northern Kenya and other border counties have been subjected to,” he said.
“This has been done without compromising the integrity of our national security and sovereignty. We are not opening the doors for non-Kenyans to apply for Kenyan documents. That will not happen and officials on the ground are aware,” said Murkomen.
Murkomen also explained that with the implementation of the Maisha Number project, there would be less need for manual screening.
"With a Maisha Number, you are identified from birth, allowing us to access your complete bio-data, including information about your relatives. This makes manual vetting obsolete," he added.
He made the remarks after the conclusion of a two-day retreat for senior officials of the Interior and National Administration ministry to take stock of the midterm performance towards the realisation of their blueprint.
The meeting that took place at a Naivasha
hotel deliberated on key priority areas, challenges and solutions to mitigate
the same in order to improve service delivery to citizens.
“As we approach the midpoint of the administration in the process of realising
our social contract with Kenyans, we have agreed on various deliverables and
set targets for improved performance.”
Murkomen said they have so far onboarded over 20,000 services on the E-Citizen
platform, with one pay bill, leading to an increase in revenue collection.
This follows a directive to digitize government services.
Other major strides are the fast-tracking of processing and issuance of identification and travel documents as well as certificates of good conduct, he said. Present were Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of performance and delivery management in the Executive Office of the President Eliud Owallo, Principal Secretary for Interior Raymond Omollo, his immigration counterpart Julius Bitok and Correctional Services’ Dr Salome Beacco Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, his deputies Gilbert Masengeli and Eliud Lagat and DCI Mohamed Amin.
