Police probe 5,752 irregular Kenya citizenship cases

• Some 5,752 old cases in which the identification documents were issued by ministers who held the Immigration docket between 2005 and 2010 have been revived.
• In some cases, the committee noted that the foreigners had presented forged papers in their applications but the minister issued citizenship nevertheless.

By FRED MUKINDA

Police have launched fresh investigations into cases in which hundreds of foreigners were issued with Kenyan citizenship documents under questionable circumstances.

Director of Criminal Investigations Ndegwa Muhoro confirmed that detectives were perusing a big number of files from the Immigration department, including those dated nine years ago.

“They are very many and we are looking into them case by case. The investigations are ongoing and we want to get all those who were involved,” he said.

The investigations target both senior immigration officers and Cabinet ministers who held the Immigration docket.

Some 5,752 old cases in which the identification documents were issued by ministers who held the Immigration docket between 2005 and 2010 have been revived.

A report prepared by the serious crimes unit in 2011, but whose recommendations were not acted upon, was retrieved from the shelves and fresh detectives ordered to pursue them.

“Investigations carried out at the ministry headquarters revealed that between 2005 to March 2010, a total of 5,752 Kenyan citizenship certificates were issued by the Department of Immigration to various applicants drawn from different nationalities,” according to the report seen by the Nation.

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