ID Vetting to Continue

On February 5, President William Ruto signed the Presidential Proclamation on Registration and Issuance of IDs to Border Counties, abolishing the mandatory vetting process for Kenya's North Eastern region residents seeking national identification cards (IDs) and passports.
According to the head of state, this move aimed to rectify decades of systemic discrimination and streamline access to essential citizenship documentation for communities in border counties.

The vetting requirement dates back to the 1960s, following the Shifta insurgency—a secessionist conflict in which ethnic Somalis in Kenya's North Eastern Province sought to join Somalia.

In response, the Kenyan government instituted stringent vetting procedures to bolster national security and curb insurgent activities.

Over time, this process evolved into a mechanism that many perceived as ethnic profiling and systemic discrimination against the residents of North Eastern Kenya.

Normally, the vetting process is conducted by a security committee comprising members from the National Intelligence Service (NIS), local chiefs, police officers, and community elders.

Applicants are required to provide extensive documentation, including their grandparents' IDs and testimonies from witnesses affirming their Kenyan birth—a demand that has proved challenging for many over the years.

Additionally, individuals from these border towns have been undergoing a second round in Nairobi, which has been a significant bottleneck, leading many to abandon the process due to logistical and financial constraints.

The financial burden has been challenging as a one-way trip to Nairobi from some of these regions could cost approximately Ksh 4,000, which is expensive for many.

While the vetting process was justified on national security grounds, it lacks a clear legal foundation, leaving the fate of thousands of applicants to the discretion of vetting committees.

More often, such power exposes the process to favouritism, corruption and abuse.

Ordinarily, the law requires everyone to provide evidence of birth in Kenya and proof of citizenship, such as parents' Kenyan ID or passport, when applying for their own IDs.

This means that everyone else undergoes some form of vetting before being issued with an ID.

Regarding the border county residents, this process will still be implemented as before.

While the abolition of the vetting process is a progressive step toward inclusivity, it is essential to balance this with national security concerns.