A fresh legal battle has landed before the High Court in Nairobi over who should constitutionally control the payroll of the National Police Service, just weeks before the government embarks on a massive recruitment exercise of 10,000 police officers.
The petition, filed by Sheria Mtaani na Shadrack Wambui, seeks an urgent interpretation of Articles 245 and 246 of the Constitution to determine whether payroll management falls under the operational mandate of the Inspector-General of Police or under the human resource oversight of the National Police Service Commission (NPSC).
The case pits the Inspector-General of Police, the National Police Service, and the Attorney General against the NPSC and the Law Society of Kenya, who have been listed as interested parties .
Through lawyer Danstan Omari, Sheria Mtaani argues that payroll administration is not a mere accounting function but the backbone of critical human resource decisions such as recruitment, promotions, transfers, suspensions, and disciplinary actions.
According to the pleadings, allowing recruitment to proceed before the dispute is resolved risks placing new officers on a payroll administered under a disputed authority, potentially prejudicing the commission’s role if the court later rules in its favour .
Court papers reveal that the petition was filed on August 11, 2025, and duly served on the respondents on August 14.
However, none of the parties have filed responses within the seven-day period ordered by the court. Meanwhile, public notices and press reports indicate that recruitment is scheduled to begin in the coming weeks, a development the petitioner says could render the entire case “nugatory” if conservatory orders are not urgently issued .
In his supporting affidavit, advocate Shadrack Wambui emphasized that recess jurisdiction exists to prevent miscarriages of justice in precisely such situations, where the strict observance of court schedules could undermine the timely resolution of constitutional disputes.
He warned that proceeding with recruitment would entrench contested practices into the payroll system, eroding public confidence in the stability of the police service and undermining any eventual ruling of the court .
The petitioner is therefore seeking immediate conservatory orders restraining the Inspector-General and the National Police Service from proceeding with the recruitment drive until the constitutional question is fully determined.
The matter has been certified as urgent and is expected to be heard during the High Court’s recess, underscoring the gravity of the constitutional issues at stake.
If granted, the orders could temporarily stall one of the country’s largest police recruitment exercises in recent years, a move that would have ripple effects on national security planning and the administration of the service. All eyes are now on the High Court to determine who truly holds the constitutional key to the police payroll.
