NAIROBI, Kenya – The manufacturer behind the newly unveiled Kenya Police General Duty uniforms has broken its silence over the procurement process, confirming that it was awarded the tender to produce and stitch the new uniforms, as the company dismissed claims of irregularity and defended the transparency of the four-year procurement process.
The Nakuru-based textile and garment manufacturer was contracted to produce 58,701 police uniforms, with completion of the assignment expected by the end of September 2026.
The firm’s Managing Director, Jaswinder Bedi, declined to disclose the value of the tender but dismissed claims that the contract was worth Sh2.8 billion, saying the arrangement was based on individual items and their respective unit prices.
“What I do know is that we have saved the police and the Government of Kenya more than 30 per cent of what they were paying before,” Bedi said, explaining that the company had streamlined the production process to reduce costs.
Procurement process
The company was initially invited, alongside other manufacturers, to produce samples of the proposed police uniforms. The samples were subsequently evaluated, with the company’s designs accepted and the procurement process proceeding to the next stage.
The samples were later evaluated by the Kenya Bureau of Standards, with two companies submitting the required samples. The process also involved public participation conducted across the country.
According to Bedi, the procurement process took about four years before being concluded in 2026, while production of the uniforms began about two months ago. The manufacturer is currently producing about 3,000 uniforms per day.
“We have created centres in the counties, and we tell them the day we will be coming. Our tailors go there, measure every officer and enter the data into our system. We are supposed to be done by the end of September, so every police officer will have their uniform,” Bedi said.
Company background
The manufacturer has operated in the textile and garment industry for more than five decades, having been incorporated in 1972, when it began as a tailor-made suit manufacturer before expanding into an integrated textile operation producing yarn, fabric, dyed and finished materials as well as garments.
It supplies institutional uniforms to several African countries and has supplied Kenyan government institutions for decades, with its first Kenya Police-related order dating back to 1992.
Political scrutiny
The confirmation comes amid growing political scrutiny of the police uniform procurement, with opposition leaders demanding details on the company that received the tender, how it was selected and the amount involved.
DAP-K leader Eugene Wamalwa had claimed the contract was worth nearly Sh3 billion and called for greater transparency over the deal.
Wamalwa also questioned whether replacing police uniforms should be a priority when officers continue to face other challenges, including housing concerns and deductions affecting their payslips.
He argued that changing the uniform would not address the wider welfare challenges facing police officers.
The controversy had also been fuelled by claims that the tender was awarded to a relatively new company linked to President William Ruto.
The National Police Service has since maintained that the claims were false, confirming that the established Nakuru-based manufacturer was lawfully awarded the contract following a procurement process conducted under the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act.
