Chief of Defence Forces (Kenya)
| Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces | |
|---|---|
 Standard of the Kenya Defence Forces | |
| National Security Council | |
| Reports to | President of Kenya |
| Residence | Ulinzi House |
| Appointer | Uhuru Kenyatta President of Kenya |
| Constituting instrument | Article 241 of the Constitution of Kenya |
The Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) is the highest-ranking military officer in the Kenya Defence Forces and the principal military adviser to the President of Kenya and the National Security Council. The CDF outranks all respective heads of each service branch and has operational command authority over the service branches. He leads the meetings and coordinates the efforts of the Service Commander, comprising the CDF, the Commander of the Kenya Army and Kenya Air Force, Kenya Navy and the Commandant of Military Intelligence. The CDF has offices in Ulinzi House. Following the 2010 Constitution, the Chief of the General Staff was replaced with the Chief of the Defence Forces.[1]
The office is considered very important and highly prestigious, because the CDF as a body has command authority over the Armed Forces. The chain of command is from the President (as the Commander in Chief), directly to the CDF. The CDF, as a Principal Adviser, does have authority over personnel assignments and oversight over resources and personnel allocated to the commands within the respective services. The Chairman may also transmit communications to the service commanders from the President. He also performs all other functions as assigned from time to time by the President. The CDF may also allocate those duties and responsibilities to other officers under his name.
List of chiefs
- Chief of the General Staff
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the General Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Bernard Penfold (1916–2015) | 1966 | 1969 | 2–3 years | Army | [2][3] | |
| 2 | Joseph Ndolo | 1969 | 24 June 1971 | 1–2 years | Army | [4] | |
| None (1971-1978) | |||||||
| 3 | General Jackson Mulinge (1924–2014) | November 1978 | 1986 | 7–8 years | Army | [5][6] | |
| 4 | General Mahamoud Mohamed | 1986 | 1996 | 9–10 years | Air Force | [7][6] | |
| 5 | General Daudi Tonje | 1996 | 30 November 2000 | 3–4 years | Army | [7][6] | |
| 5 | General Joseph Kibwana | 1 December 2000 | 31 August 2005 | 4–5 years | Navy | [6] | |
| 6 | General Jeremiah Kianga | 1 September 2005 | 12 July 2011 | 5–6 years | Army | [6] | |
- Chief of the Defence Forces
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the Defence Forces | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Julius Waweru Karangi | 13 July 2011 | 4 May 2015 | 3 years, 295 days | Air force | [6] | |
| 2 | General Samson Mwathethe | 4 May 2015 | Incumbent | 9 years, 67 days | Navy | [6][8] |
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Citations
- ^ Kibet, Dennis (28 June 2018). "KDF makes major changes". Puls live. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- ^ Hornsby 2012, p. 180.
- ^ "King's Collections : Archive Catalogues : Military Archives". kcl.ac.uk. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
- ^ Hornsby 2012, p. 228-229.
- ^ Hornsby 2012, p. 335-336.
- ^ a b c d e f g Nairobian reporter. "Seven Kenya Defence Forces military generals you never wanted to mess with". SDE. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- ^ a b Hornsby 2012, p. 554.
- ^ Ramadhan, Khatib (1 May 2015). "Navy General takes over as new Chief of Kenya Defence Forces". Indian Ocean Observer. Mombasa. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
References
- Hornsby, Charles (2012). Kenya: A History Since Independence. London/New York: I. B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84885-886-2.