A coalition of civil society organizations has expressed concerns regarding recent staffing issues and hiring processes within the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and has asked the Public Service Commission (PSC) to shed more light on these issues.
Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi!, Transparency International-Kenya, the Institute for Social Accountability (TISA), and the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), all working through the National Integrity Alliance (NIA), have identified a number of issues regarding recent ODPP processes that they feel the PSC should be aware of.
The civil society organizations have expressed that their petition to the PSC is to enhance transparency and accountability in one of Kenya’s key institutions.
The civil society organizations are concerned about the recent dismissal and redeployment of seven senior staff members within the ODPP shortly after the current Director of Public Prosecutions took office in 2023. They are also concerned about a job advert by the ODPP on December 29 last year. They have asked to be let in on information regarding the shortlisting criteria, the qualifications of those who made the cut, and information regarding how long each interview for a senior position would take – only 20 minutes.
The civil society organizations have acknowledged that the ODPP is an independent institution. However, this independence does not preclude the agency from being transparent and answerable to the public regarding how it is run and how its staff are recruited.
In their petition to the PSC, the civil society organizations have expressed that oversight is necessary to prevent abuse of power, political interference, and arbitrariness. They have expressed that power must always be used to serve justice and must always be in line with the law.
The civil society organizations have asked that their petition be responded to in writing by the PSC as soon as possible. They have also sent their petition to the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), and all members of the ODPP Advisory Board.
