Maraga Threatens to Release Police Reform Report After 3-Year Wait

Former Chief Justice David Maraga is preparing to make public the full report of a presidential taskforce on police reforms, nearly three years after he handed it to President William Ruto.

Maraga says he gave the President seven days to release the document but the deadline has now passed without the full report being made public.

The former Chief Justice announced on Friday that he was in the final stages of consultations before taking the next step.

“I now have the solemn responsibility to make the report public. I am in the final stages of consultation with various stakeholders and shall communicate the next steps in due course,” Maraga said in a statement.

The move puts renewed pressure on the Government to explain why a report commissioned by the President and prepared at public expense has not been fully released.

Three years since the report was handed over

The National Taskforce on Improvement of Terms and Conditions of Service and Other Reforms for members of the National Police Service, Kenya Prisons Service and National Youth Service completed its work under Maraga's leadership.

The final report was handed to Ruto at State House on November 16, 2023.

The taskforce had been appointed in December 2022 to examine challenges affecting the three services and recommend changes to improve service delivery, accountability and the welfare of personnel.

Its findings covered far more than police salaries.

The taskforce identified underfunding, corruption, leadership problems, weaknesses in human-resource management and wider structural challenges affecting the three institutions.

It also proposed changes to recruitment, training, promotions, transfers and working conditions.

Among its headline recommendations was a phased 40 per cent increase in salaries for officers in the police, prisons and NYS over three years. Ruto welcomed the recommendation at the time and directed the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to begin work on the proposed changes.

What exactly remains unpublished?

The issue is not that nothing from the taskforce has ever been made public.

An executive summary of the report is publicly available and outlines its major findings and recommendations. However, the taskforce said the detailed recommendations and implementation matrices were contained in the full report.

It is that complete and unedited report that Maraga has been demanding should be released.

On August 18, Maraga gave Ruto seven days to publish it, invoking the constitutional right of access to information. He warned that he would release it himself if the President did not act.

That deadline has now become the backdrop to his latest announcement.

A report with major implications for policing

The document could reopen debate over some of the most significant proposed changes to Kenya's security services.

The taskforce recommended raising the minimum academic qualification for recruitment into the National Police Service from D+ to C-, while retaining the lower threshold for some applicants from marginalised areas.

It also proposed extending police training from nine to 12 months and introducing more competency-based training.

Other recommendations touched on the recruitment process, senior-officer vetting and the structure and independence of the institutions responsible for policing.

The taskforce also recommended measures to address the quality and supply of police uniforms. One proposal was the creation of a National Uniforms Committee to set standards for uniforms across disciplined services.

The breadth of the recommendations means publication of the full document could provide a clearer picture of the reforms envisaged when the taskforce was established.

Ruto had already accepted some recommendations

The Government did not wait for the final report before acting on every recommendation.

In October 2023, after receiving an interim report, Ruto endorsed several proposals, including changes to remuneration and terms of service, two entry points into the National Police Service and a new transfer policy limiting how long officers could remain at one station.

After receiving the final report in November, the President said some recommendations would require legislation while others could be implemented administratively.

There has also been progress on some reforms since then.

The National Police Service Commission reported in 2024 that work was continuing on areas including salary reviews, promotions, decentralisation of human-resource functions and proposed amendments to its governing law.

The Government could therefore argue that parts of the taskforce's agenda have already been acted upon.

Maraga, however, is now pressing for the public to see the full report and assess the recommendations for themselves.

Why the timing matters

Maraga's renewed push comes at a politically sensitive moment, with Kenya heading towards the 2027 General Election and continued public debate over policing, accountability and the constitutional limits of state power.

In his August 18 letter to Ruto, Maraga raised concerns about the independence of the National Police Service and cited what he described as cases of political violence and partisan policing. Those were his allegations and have not been established as findings of the taskforce itself.

His latest statement also comes a day after the country marked Katiba Day at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre.

The 2026 celebrations focused on “The People's Power, Constitutionalism and Democracy Ahead of 2027”, with Ruto speaking about constitutional rights and the need to protect democratic freedoms.

For Maraga, that provides an obvious constitutional backdrop to his demand for publication.

What happens next?

Maraga has not yet given a date for releasing the report.

He says consultations with stakeholders are almost complete and that he will announce the next steps.

The Government has also not publicly indicated that it will release the full document following Maraga's latest statement.

The dispute now goes beyond one report.

At its heart is a question about public accountability: when a taskforce is appointed by the President, funded by taxpayers and tasked with proposing reforms to public institutions, how long should its findings remain out of the public domain?

For Kenya's police service, the stakes are even higher.

The taskforce was created to address problems ranging from officers' welfare and working conditions to institutional leadership, accountability and service delivery.

Nearly three years after its recommendations reached State House, Maraga says Kenyans should finally be allowed to see the full blueprint.

About the Author

Maureen Onyango is a journalist passionate about storytelling, life coaching and spiritual lessons. She studied at the Kenya Institute of Management and enjoys telling stories that inform, inspire and empower communities.