Individual Corruption

Citizens rank the police as the most corrupt in Kenya, with nearly six out of ten respondents reporting to have paid a bribe in 2009, according to Transparency International's Global Corruption Barometer 2010. At the same time, Transparency International Kenya's East African Bribery Index 2009 reports that while the number of bribes paid to the police has declined in recent years, the amount paid per bribe has increased.

In February 2009, Phillip Ashton, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, published a damming report finding "that police in Kenya frequently executed individuals and that a climate of impunity prevails". He also reported on the existence of police death squads. Although the government has rejected the findings, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights acknowledging that police had killed 308 youths in 2008. The report was cited in US Department of State 2010. As a result of the UN report, the chief of the police force was fired, however structural reforms to address the underlying reasons behind the brutality were not implemented, according to Freedom House 2011.

Solicitation of bribes by traffic police is reportedly common. Accordingly, the police commissioner established a special police squad in 2006 that included undercover detectives with a mandate to combat corruption involving police during traffic stops, as stated in the US Department of State 2008. The government arrested and charged some officers with various offences, including corruption. Nonetheless, according to the report, police officers are rarely arrested and prosecuted for corruption.

The Kenyan Human Rights Commission has drafted a bill designed to help the police cultivate a culture of respect for human rights and promote transparency and accountability in interactions between police and the public, according to the Bertelsmann Foundation 2010.

Business Corruption

Foreign investors should be aware that transportation costs may rise as a consequence of arbitrary demands for bribes at road blocks and other transit checkpoints. The World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012 reveals that companies identify Kenya to perform insufficiently in relation to the reliability of police services to protect them from crime.

Political Corruption

According to the US Department of State 2010, in 2008, a local NGO noted that bribery was a problem in the police recruitment process. The police often employ unqualified candidates with political connections or who have paid bribes to win the position. Despite that a police oversight board was established in September 2008 to hear citizens’ complaints and to make recommendations, a lack of political will and police concerns, have hampered the function of the board. Moreover, corrupt police officers were rarely arrested and punished. Underfunding is said to be the reason for bribery within the police force, as reported in Global Integrity 2009.

Frequency

World Economic Forum: The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012:
- Business executives give the reliability of Kenyan police services to enforce law and order a score of 3.2 on a 7-point scale (1 being 'cannot be relied upon at all' and 7 'can always be relied upon').

Transparency International: Global Corruption Barometer 2010:
- 41% of households who had contact with the police in 2009 report to have paid a bribe.

Transparency International Kenya: The East African Bribery Index 2009:
- With a score of 66.5%, the police are ranked as the most corrupt institution by citizens. The police have been perceived to be the most bribery-prone institution in the country for seven years in a row.

- The likelihood of encountering bribery in interactions with the police is reported to be 85.5%.

- 63.4% of the respondents report to have paid a bribe in their interaction with the police.

- 10.4% of the respondents, who refused to pay bribes to the police, were denied service.

- The respondents pay 3.1 bribes per year on average to the police, the average size of which is KES 3,180.

.Afrobarometer: Summary of Results Kenya 2008:
- 44% of household respondents report not to trust the police.

- 77% of household respondents believe that most or all police officers are involved in corruption.