City police bosses told to surrender juniors' old uniforms by today

Police officers on patrol. All police commanders within Nairobi County have been ordered to surrender junior officers’ old uniforms to the Kenya Police Service central stores in Industrial Area.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • The directive is a follow up to Mr Yakub’s September 11 order that all officers stationed within the city should stop wearing the old light blue shirts and navy blue trousers for the new Persian blue uniform.
  • The new directive means more business to tailors who have been supplying officers with the new uniforms, contrary to the law.

All police commanders within Nairobi County have until the close of business today to surrender junior officers’ old uniforms to the Kenya Police Service central stores in Industrial Area.  

This follows a new order by the regional commander Rashid Yakub who, on Wednesday, directed all commanders in charge of sub-county stations, traffic, depots, law courts and all section heads to withdraw all old uniforms from the officers under their command.

The uniforms to be withdrawn include the old Kenya Police Service blue uniforms, the khaki uniforms won by members of the inspectorate and gazetted officers and those of the former Administration Police Service (APS) officers who were integrated into KPS last year.

“Please ensure that you complete a kit withdrawal certificate in respect of the withdrawn items and update the officers’ kit cards.

Old light blue shirts

“All extra uniforms must also be surrendered and this exercise should be completed by Friday, September 25, 2020, without fail,” the directive reads in part.

Police sources told the Nation the old uniforms will be disposed of to prevent its circulation in the city.

The directive is a follow up to Mr Yakub’s September 11 order that all officers stationed within the city should stop wearing the old light blue shirts and navy blue trousers for the new Persian blue uniform.

The new directive means more business to tailors who have been supplying officers with the new uniforms, contrary to the law.

“All they ask is your station, rank and a deposit which can easily be cooked by anyone. I called one tailor and promised to go get my measurements taken but failed to because I wasn’t in need of one. However, he kept calling me back to remind me to rush so as not to miss on a discount he had offered me,” a source told the Nation.