Inspector General of police Japhet Koome Friday said the security details attached to former President Uhuru Kenyatta had been scaled down but not withdrawn as reported.
IG Koome said Uhuru and his family are safe and secure.
"They are safe and secure. All including former government officials," he said on Friday.
Koome confirmed that the changes were part of a restructuring process within the National Police Service.
The IG said he recalled the officer in charge of the former president to comply with the regulations of the NPS.
"Once the president has retired, the commander is a superintendent of police. An officer who was of the rank of an assistant Inspector General was with the retired president," he said.
"So how do you expect an assistant Inspector General to report to another assistant Inspector General."
Koome defended the move noting that it was in good faith and not a result of a political witch-hunt.
However, he declined to respond to the question of the number of police officers attached to the former president describing it as confidential.
Koome confirmed that the security detail of former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta was still intact.
"The former First Lady has security, not just the former first lady, even our late two former Presidents, we secure their premises. We respect those offices, we provide security," Koome said.
He said several former government officials had had their security scaled down.
Koome said the changes were aimed at rationalising security deployment in the country to ensure the fair distribution of security personnel.
He said it would be unfair if the former government officials were left to retain the same number of security personnel in their retirement yet the current officials needed protection in their operations.
“Don’t politicise this issue. I am a policeman, an arbiter out to protect all. I am neutral and it is out of my priorities,” Koome said.
The Presidential Retirement Benefits Act 2013 says the former president is entitled to at least six bodyguards and security in both urban and rural homes on a need basis as determined by the ministry of interior from time to time.
However, the same law allows the state to deprive him of the benefits if Parliament passes a resolution on the same.
This can happen if the retired president gets another job in the government and earns a salary or is jailed for over three years or actively participates in running politics.
