Police asks for 20,000 recruits

By Moses Walubiri

Ministry of Internal Affairs has asked government to give it special dispensation to enable the police department to enlist 20,000 officers ahead of the 2016 general elections.

Last year, Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development slapped an across the board moratorium on recruitment of new staff by all government departments which frustrated a cabinet directive to annually recruit 2500 police personnel for the next five years.

The recruitment drive if given a nod by Ministry of Finance will see the enlistment of 5,500 personnel over the medium term at a cost of sh32.67b.

This, according to ministry of Internal Affairs budget estimates for the financial year 2013/14, will help reduce incidents of crime and improve police to population ratio in accordance with the international standards of 1:500.

It’s also hoped that the recruitment will help plug the attrition in the police force – which stands at over 1000 annually -  as a result of death, retirement, desertion and dismissal of personnel.

“Therefore, with this ban in place police will not be able to achieve its planned activities and will seriously impact negatively on the efficiency and effectiveness of the police in carrying out its mandate,” the ministerial statement reads.

The country has been rocked by a spate of violent crimes, with iron bar hit men wreaking havoc on Kampala, Mukono and their suburbs.

“The police force is understaffed and we have a long way to go before we can attain the staffing levels required,” police spokesperson Judith Nabakoba told New Vision, lauding the mooted recruitment as a drive aimed at “keeping a lid on crime.”

When asked about the current strength of the police force, Nabakoba put it slightly above 40,000. “It’s hard to say with certainty because of desertions and deaths,” she said, putting the required strength at 60,000 police officers.

According to last year’s police Annual Crime Report, there is a total decline in crime since 2007 although the police force is increasingly getting stretched by a burgeoning population.