The Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja has been ordered to appear before the High Court on September 28, 2026, for mitigation and sentencing after being found in contempt of a court order over the barricading of roads into Nairobi’s Central Business District during June 2025 protests
Justice Patricia Nyaundi found the Inspector General personally responsible for failing to ensure that members of the National Police Service complied with an order requiring prior public notice before roads could be barricaded or checkpoints erected during the commemoration of the June 2024 Finance Bill protests.
The court found that police erected roadblocks and restricted access to the CBD on June 25, 2026, without issuing the advisory required by the order.
Justice Nyaundi rejected the argument that the checkpoints did not unlawfully interfere with movement, holding that the absence of notice was itself significant.
“Citizens cannot meaningfully exercise their movement when confronted with sudden unexplained barriers,” the judge observed in her ruling.
The judge said the court order imposed a positive obligation on the Inspector General to ensure that the public was informed whenever road closures or checkpoints were contemplated.
The court further held that operational procedures could not override a valid court order and that the Inspector General could not shift responsibility to subordinate officers.
According to the ruling, the Inspector General was expected to demonstrate how he had ensured compliance with the court’s directions, particularly given his knowledge of the restrictions on movement.
Justice Nyaundi also took issue with what she described as the Inspector General’s failure to personally address the allegations of non-compliance.
The judge said the failure to explain what measures had been taken to comply with the order pointed to more than an administrative lapse, describing it as a failure to appreciate the constitutional duty attached to the office.
The court linked the obligation to comply with the order to Articles 10 and 244 of the Constitution, which require respect for the rule of law, human rights, transparency and accountability within the National Police Service.
Justice Nyaundi stressed that contempt proceedings were not intended to protect the personal authority or ego of a judge, but to safeguard the rule of law and ensure that court orders are obeyed.
She cited several authorities on the importance of compliance with judicial orders, including Kenyan and South African decisions dealing with contempt and the rule of law.
The judge also referred to Article 24 of the Constitution, which requires limitations on constitutional rights to be reasonable, justifiable and procedurally fair.
She said indiscriminate restrictions on access to the CBD without the notice contemplated by the court order could not be reconciled with those constitutional standards.
The court noted that the Inspector General had been present at a press conference where assurances were reportedly given that the following day would be a normal day for schoolchildren and business people. Despite those assurances, roadblocks were subsequently mounted around the CBD.
Justice Nyaundi concluded that the Inspector General was in contempt of the court order issued in July 2025 because no public advisory had been issued before the emergency barricading of roads.
The Inspector General is now required to appear before the court on September 28, 2026 to make submissions in mitigation. The court will then determine the appropriate sentence.
