[2014] KEHC 7512 (KLR)

[2014] KEHC 7512 (KLR)

The court found that the vetting process conducted by the Respondents did not meet the constitutional and administrative threshold of fairness required under Article 47 of the Constitution. The Applicants were vetted less than 24 hours after the relevant regulations were gazetted, and there was no evidence that the Applicants or the public were notified of these regulations as required by law. The Respondents themselves did not have copies of the regulations at the time of vetting. The Applicants were not afforded adequate opportunity to respond to allegations against them, and the process failed to meet the standards of procedural fairness and natural justice. While the court recognized...

Citation
[2014] KEHC 7512 (KLR)
Parties
Applicant: Immanuel Masinde Okutoyi & Others; Respondent: The National Police Service Commission; Respondent: Attorney General
Court
High Court
Court Station
High Court at Nairobi (Milimani Law Courts)
Jurisdiction
Kenya
Judgment Date
20 May 2014
Case Number
Petition 6 of 2014
Procedural Posture
Constitutional Petition / Judgment
Outcome
Application allowed in part; vetting determinations quashed; fresh vetting ordered.
Legal Topics
Procedural Fairness, Vetting of Public Officers, Natural Justice, Police Reforms, Judicial Review, Public Service Employment
Source Language
English
Constitutional Law Administrative Law Employment and Labour Procedural Fairness Vetting of Public Officers Natural Justice Police Reforms Judicial Review +1 more

Case Brief

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Parties

Immanuel Masinde Okutoyi & Others

Applicant

The National Police Service Commission

Respondent

Attorney General

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Constitutional Petition / Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the vetting process of the Applicants by the Respondents met the constitutional and administrative threshold of fairness.
  2. 2 Whether the Respondents had the legal power to formulate and gazette the vetting rules and regulations under Section 124 of the National Police Service Act.
  3. 3 Whether the vetting panel as constituted was legal and properly constituted under the law.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the vetting process conducted by the Respondents did not meet the constitutional and administrative threshold of fairness required under Article 47 of the Constitution. The Applicants were vetted less than 24 hours after the relevant regulations were gazetted, and there was no evidence that the Applicants or the public were notified of these regulations as required by law. The Respondents themselves did not have copies of the regulations at the time of vetting. The Applicants were not afforded adequate opportunity to respond to allegations against them, and the process failed to meet the standards of procedural fairness and natural justice. While the court recognized...

Court Disposition

Application allowed in part; vetting determinations quashed; fresh vetting ordered.

Orders

  • A declaration that the Respondents’ conduct of the vetting process in respect of the Applicants did not meet the constitutional and administrative threshold of fairness.
  • An order of certiorari quashing the proceedings and determinations to retire the Applicants from the National Police Service.