State defends de-gazettement of Capitol Hill Police Station land

The government has moved to clarify and defend its decision to remove Capitol Hill Police Station in Nairobi from official gazette status, explaining that the plan is part of long-running land allocation decisions approved by Cabinet over several years and not a sudden action.

Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi told the Senate Standing Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations that the five-acre piece of land in Upper Hill, currently hosting the police station, will be divided and handed over to three institutions for development of headquarters and related facilities.

He traced the decision to a series of approvals beginning in 2018, saying the process has gone through several stages of review, reallocation, and legal consultation before reaching the current implementation phase.

According to the explanation presented to the committee, Cabinet first approved the allocation of the land occupied by Capitol Hill Police Station to the African Trade Insurance Agency, now known as the African Trade and Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI), for the construction of its headquarters.

The government further noted that the plan was later affected by overlapping interests in the same parcel, which led to a fresh allocation decision.

"In 2021, the same parcel of land was allocated to St. John Ambulance," the response said.

The competing allocations prompted further review by the executive, leading to a revised arrangement approved in 2023. Under this new structure, Land Reference Number 209/10531 will be subdivided into three portions to accommodate different institutions.

Two acres will be allocated to ATIDI, another two acres will be set aside for a consolidated Financial Sector Regulators' headquarters, while one acre will go to St. John Ambulance.

Mudavadi told senators that the process was officially set in motion after the Principal Secretary for Internal Security informed the Inspector General of the National Police Service of Cabinet’s decision and instructed that the formal process of removing the station from gazette be started.

The government also addressed concerns about legality and procedure, saying the matter was subjected to legal review before any action was taken.

According to the statement, the Inspector General sought legal advice from the Attorney General in July 2025 regarding the proposed de-gazettement. The Attorney General subsequently issued "a preliminary legal opinion that outlined the background to the matter, the applicable legal considerations and the requisite safeguards to guide the de-gazettement and land transfer process."

After receiving the legal guidance, the Inspector General concluded that the land was no longer needed for policing purposes and declared it "redundant for police use", clearing the way for the de-gazettement steps to proceed.

Authorities further sought to calm concerns over possible disruption of security services in the area, insisting that policing would continue without interruption even after the changes take effect.

"The Inspector General of the National Police Service has briefed my office that there will be no gap in the provision of policing services within the area," Mudavadi said.

He added that the duties previously handled by Capitol Hill Police Station have already been redistributed to nearby facilities, including Kilimani Police Station, Kenyatta Hospital Police Post, Golf Course Police Post and Kemri Patrol Base, which will continue covering the area.