The National Police Service Commission (NPSC) is overwhelmed by the number of police officers requiring counselling services, a committee of House has learnt.
Appearing before the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security for consideration of 2024-25 Financial Year Estimates, the commission said it has “enormous requests for counselling services and cannot cope with the demands.”
Chief executive officer Peter Leley said the commission has employed and deployed only 25 counsellors and 13 social workers to the regions.
“Therefore, there is a need for recruitment of additional counsellors, social workers and technical staff to be posted to the regions in order to provide additional counselling services,” he told the committee.
He said the commission intends to set up counselling and rehabilitation units in the eight regions and 47 counties in the first and second phases and later extend to 300 subcounties in the third phase.
“This will enable staff offer counselling and other HR-related services to police officers at the regional and county services,” he said.
He noted that the commission has, so far, managed to establish offices/counselling and rehabilitation units in Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Garissa, Kakamega and Eldoret.
“Setting up counselling and rehabilitation units across various regions and counties aims to provide essential support services to police officers, addressing their psychological and rehabilitation needs,” Leley said in submissions to the committee.
He said the initiatives aim to address mental health challenges within the National Police Service and improve the overall well-being of its officers, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more resilient police force.
The commission’s 2024-25 budget estimate is Sh1,131,272,317 with a significant deviation of Sh138,177,683 from the approved 2024 Budget Policy Statement Ceilings of Sh1,269,450,000.
“A reduction in this budget will incapacitate the commission’s operations and hinder its ability to execute its mandate,” Leley said.
He noted that National Police Service officers are spread across the country and some of them are unable to access them for counselling services.
He further noted that the commission is in the process of decentralising its services to eight regions and 47 counties in a phased approach.
Leley said the commission is reviewing the training curriculum to entrench mental health and developing MoUs with hospitals to support in the rehabilitation and counselling services.
