Govt To Abolish Vetting During ID Application From May

Kenyans especially from marginalized communities can now breathe a sigh of relief after the government announced plans to abolish the national identification card vetting process.

President William Ruto announced on April 8 while attending a Muslim leaders’ Iftar dinner at State House, Nairobi on Monday.

The president said that he will soon issue a policy document to ease the ID application process from May 2024.

“Starting Next month (May 2024) there will be no vetting for Kenyans who want to get ID cards,” said Ruto.

“I’m going to be issuing a policy document to make sure that we have a mechanism that is similar to other Kenyans so that we don’t discriminate based on religion or region.”

The announcement is more of a relief, especially to applicants from Asian, Arab and Nubians who are not considered ‘indigenous’ communities in Kenya.

It has been an issue among the indigenous communities in Kenyans as they often view it as a form of discrimination following the stress they go through to get legal document.

Ruto also reiterated that it’s discriminatory noting that the government was amending the guidelines on ID card issuance.

“Every Kenyan should be treated equally. We have changed the old policy and have concluded the policy documents,” he added.

The president also promised to gazette the Kenya Nubian community as a tribe by December 2024.