Former Chief Justice David Maraga has made good his threat to the Executive by publicly releasing the unedited report of the National Taskforce on Police Reforms, accusing President William Ruto of allowing the “political capture” of the National Police Service. Speaking during a charged press briefing at the United Green Movement offices in Nairobi on August 31, 2026, Maraga revealed that the critical state document had been suppressed for nearly three years after being formally handed over to the Head of State on November 16, 2023. The former judiciary chief had issued a strict seven-day ultimatum to State House to make the investigative findings public before taking independent action.
Maraga issued a stern warning that operating a heavily compromised, partisan police outfit would severely threaten democratic stability and potentially trigger a repetition of the historic 2007/2008 post-election chaos. The chairperson of the twenty-member review committee noted that police brutality had directly contributed to an alarming 3,958 civilian deaths over a four-year period under the current political administration. He vehemently criticized the state’s superficial approach to security sector changes, laughing off the recent deployment of new police uniforms as an opaque project fundamentally marred by procurement corruption and financial greed rather than genuine administrative progress.
The retired Chief Justice underscored that systemic overhauls must look past cosmetic uniform adjustments, heavily demanding the immediate restoration of absolute constitutional independence for the country’s law enforcement leadership.
«”Unless the independence of the police service is restored, we will not have a country,” Maraga said.»
He strongly urged the legislature to repeal the controversial Security Laws (Miscellaneous Amendment) Act of 2014, which he argued completely stripped away constitutional safeguards and left senior police commanders trapped within the political stranglehold of the presidency.
Furthermore, the publication highlighted deep institutional rot, noting that senior security chiefs, including Inspector General Douglas Kanja and Directorate of Criminal Investigations boss Amin Mohamed, are currently holding their public offices illegally after passing their mandatory statutory retirement ages. Maraga challenged citizens to read and interrogate the full 200-recommendation dossier to demand structural accountability from State House. The taskforce report proposes competitive recruitment processes, a strict three-year maximum station transfer rule, and immediate welfare upgrades to effectively rescue the service from deep-seated political manipulation.