Kilimani police station. PHOTO | COURTESY
It is now official that any police officer found charging fees for issuance of P3 Forms will have a case to answer.
On Monday, Deputy Inspector General Edward Mbugua, shared with all officers across the country a recent court ruling that ordered that P3 Forms are issued free of charge which had his signature on it.
This means that the National Police Service will have to dig deeper into its pockets to ensure that the vital document is always available.
“Any officer found levying fees for issue of P3 Form will be subject to serious disciplinary actions,” read the last line of the ruling.
ILLEGAL CHARGES
The ruling, which was issued on April 5 by the Embu High Court, termed the levies charged in police stations as illegal.
In the ruling, Justice Florence Muchemi said that the Constitution does not provide for charging of filling of P3 Forms which are issued by the police.
“No policy or statutes purports that victims of violence seeking medical treatment pay for the filling of P3 Forms,” she stated.
CONTEMPT OF COURT
Justice Muchemi was delivering a judgment in a case in which the Legal Resources Foundation Trust had sued the Health Ministry challenging the constitutionality of P3 Form charges.
The judge also said that most Kenyans do not have access to the internet and therefore “rely on the hard copy of the form that is issued in police stations.”
Justice Muchemi also asked the National Police Service to ensure that all police officers are informed on the same in order to avoid being in contempt of court.
Nairobi News has learnt that it has been costing Kenyans between Sh300 to Sh2,000 to be issued with the document.
Credit: Source link