President William Ruto has announced a salary increment for security officers, including police and prison personnel, defying a recent freeze on public sector pay reviews.
President Ruto, addressing the gathering, stated, “From this month, we will be living up to our commitment to enhance the salaries of our policemen and prison officers, in line with our commitment that we made.”
This announcement comes as a surprise, given the Salaries and Remuneration Commission’s (SRC) recent decision to freeze salary reviews for all public officers in the 2024/25 Financial Year, citing budget constraints.
“You come into office with good tidings for the men in the prison service because this month they will have their first installment of increment of salaries,” Ruto told the newly appointed Commissioner General Mwiti.
The salary boost is part of a broader reform agenda for Kenya’s prison service. President Ruto outlined several key initiatives, including an extensive tree planting programme and a push for increased food production within prison lands. “It is my expectation of you to make sure that every arable piece of land under the prison service is put under food production for purposes of supplying food to the prison service and by extension to the country,” he instructed Mwiti.
Additionally, the President emphasised the need for improved housing for prison officers. “We will be working with you and your team to identify the areas, to work with the state department of housing, to ensure that our prison officers, men and women, [have] decent housing across the country,” Ruto affirmed.
The timing of this announcement is particularly noteworthy given the SRC’s statement on July 18, which read, “The Salaries and Remuneration Commission has deferred the implementation of the salary review for all public officers in the Financial Year 2024/2025 until further notice, contingent upon the availability of funding.” This divergence between the government’s actions and the SRC’s directive raises questions about fiscal management and prioritisation in Kenya’s public sector.
Commissioner General Mwiti, in his new role, faces the challenge of implementing these reforms while managing heightened expectations. President Ruto acknowledged this, saying, “That puts on your shoulders a heavy responsibility of greater expectation of both the country and myself.”
