President William Ruto's government is planning a radical administration policy that would herald the return of the once dreaded and all-powerful Nyayo-era chiefs.
Powerful Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki, the architect of the policy, has affirmed that the 6,000 chiefs across the country will be armed and assigned five police officers.
Currently, although chiefs chair the local security committees, there are no police officers under their command with security officers stationed at police stations.
This as the proposal triggered a storm, with a section of opposition leaders warning that the plan to arm the administrators and put under their command at least five police officers, would be 'illegal'
However, Kindiki has said that the new measures which will be rolled out from January, is part of the Kenya Kwanza government's plans to enhance grassrrots security.
“Every chief will have at least five police officers attached to them. We want to ensure that chiefs are enabled to enforce the law and articulate government policy,” Kindiki said in Mtwapa.
The CS, who spoke when he made an impromptu visit of Mtwapa chief's office in Kilifi, asked officers in the State Department of Interior to start deploying police officer in chief's camps.
There are fears that the plan to empower the National Government Administration Officer(NGAO) by arming them and authorising them to execute field operations could signal a return of Nyayo era chiefs.
Constitutional lawyer Bobi Mkangi, one of the drafters of the 2010 Constitution, warned that arming chiefs without public participation would be illegal.
"Based on what used to happen during the Nyayo era, the government has to be sensitive to the horror Kenyans underwent at the hands of provincial administrators before the new constitution," he said.
During the late President Moi's regime chiefs wielded immense powers that ensured that their word was law.
They were, however, viewed by the citizenry as bullies and abusers of human rights.
“Police Service was made independent under the 2010 Constitution and cannot be directed by one or office and the president has no authority to place them under any office,” protested ODM chairman John Mbadi.
The 2010 constitution recommended the restructuring of the then powerful provincial administration to respect the system of devolved government.
The officers were renamed from Provincial Administrators to National government administrators.
Before then, chiefs were so powerful and some of them were used by the then governments to crack down on grassroots dissent while other allegedly used their powers to oppress the poor.
Minority leader Opiyo Wandayi questioned the rationale behind the plan warning that was going against the spirit of the Constitution.
The Ugunja MP insisted that for the proposal to get legal protection, then the Kenya Kwanza government must first amend the National Police Service Act.
“They are putting the cat before the horse; we are under a new constitution and laws. The 2010 Constitution came up with the National Police Service Act, clearly defining the command structure,” he said.
On Friday, Kindiki said all the NGAO officers will be give arms “to make sure we deal with security threats once and for all”.
The CS, however, issued a stern warning to the officers against misusing their weapons or power.
“The gun and any other weapon that an officer is provided with by the government of Kenya is to be used to protect the lives of Kenyans and their properties from criminals,” Kindiki said.
“Use the weapon within the law and according to the constitution and the government will protect and defend you.”