Deputy President Kithure Kindiki reflected on his impactful two-year tenure as the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration, highlighting major reforms as he transitions to serve as President William Ruto’s principal assistant.
In his first media address as Deputy President on Thursday evening, the former Tharaka Nithi Senator shared his achievements, including improvements in passport production efficiency and intensified crackdowns on banditry in the North Rift and criminal gangs across Kenya.
“I took over this sensitive duty at Harambee House at a time when communities in North Eastern Kenya and Lamu faced frequent terror attacks,” Kindiki noted. “Marauding bandits had spread fear across the Northern Rift, gang crime peaked in Nairobi, and the Kenyan passport system was nearly defunct with significant backlogs. Key homeland security agencies were under-resourced and in desperate need of reform.”
Now leaving his role as Interior CS, Kindiki expressed pride in the progress made, especially in securing Lamu and North Eastern Kenya, regions previously plagued by violence.
To our gallant security officers who paid the ultimate price to keep Kenya safe, I salute you and promise that Kenya will never forget your valor and sacrifice,” he stated.
The Deputy President highlighted his overhaul of the passport production system, which was severely hampered by outdated equipment, supplier debts, and corruption cartels. Following strategic reorganization and acquisition of modern printers, passport processing time has reduced from over a year in 2022 to just seven days, with a backlog of 724,000 cleared.
“The challenge now is to expedite delivery for the remaining 85,000 uncollected passports,” Kindiki added.
During his time as Interior CS, Kindiki remained entirely focused on domestic issues, not taking any international trips. However, he departed for Botswana on Friday to represent President Ruto at the inauguration ceremony for Botswana’s new President.
