The National Police Service has rejected reports linking Nalitex Limited to the production of Kenya’s newly unveiled police uniforms, saying the company played no role in the procurement process.
Muchiri Nyaga, the NPS director of corporate communications and spokesman, said Nalitex neither bid for the contract nor supplied the uniforms.
He said the new General Duty uniforms are being made by Bedi Investments Limited, which was awarded the contract after a procurement process conducted under Kenya’s public procurement laws.
“The entity referred to in the media reports as Nalitex Limited did not participate at any stage of the procurement process,” Nyaga said.
He added that the company was not awarded the contract, was not hired as a subcontractor and had received no purchase order or payment from the NPS.
The new uniforms were unveiled at the Police Training College in Kiganjo on August 28, marking a return to the traditional colour scheme after officers wore Persian-blue uniforms introduced in 2018.
The NPS said the decision to change the uniforms was part of a broader police reform programme and was not made suddenly.
According to Nyaga, the issue was considered by the Maraga Task Force on Police Reforms, chaired by former Chief Justice David Maraga. Consultations with police officers found dissatisfaction with the existing uniforms, he said, with officers favouring a return to the previous colours.
The NPS later worked with the Kenya Bureau of Standards to develop specifications for the new uniforms.
Four local textile manufacturers were then invited to submit samples. They were Bedi Investments, Rivatex East Africa, Thika Textile Mills and Sunflag Textiles & Knitwear Mills.
Nyaga said only Bedi Investments and Rivatex submitted samples within the required period.
After the samples were evaluated and subjected to public participation, the Bedi Investments design was selected and approved through the relevant security structures, according to the NPS.
The contract was subsequently awarded to Bedi Investments to manufacture and stitch the uniforms.
Nyaga said the procurement followed the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act and related regulations.
He said the NPS welcomed scrutiny over the spending of public money but urged journalists and the public to rely on verified information.
He described reports associating Nalitex with the tender as “false and malicious”.
The NPS said it would continue with the wider police reform programme while maintaining that public procurement should remain transparent and accountable.
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