Govt Launches Mandatory Training & Licensing For All Bouncers

The Ministry of Interior and National Administration has launched mandatory security vetting and training for all bouncers, bodyguards, event stewards, door supervisors, event security, VIP protection, close protection, and crowd control security personnel.

In a notice, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Director General for the Private Security Regulatory Authority (PRSA) Fazul Mahamed announced that the exercise will be conducted per the Private Security Regulation Act No. 13 of 2016’.

“Section 2 of the Private Security Regulation Act No. 13 of 2016 provides that bouncers, event security personnel, VIP protection personnel, Crowd Control Personnel or any other person hired or otherwise engaged to ensure order and safety on premises used for entertainment, recreational or sporting purposes falls within the legal definition of a private security service provide under the Act,” he stated.

Fazul Mahamed, the director general of the Private Security Regulatory Authority. /THE STAR

“Further, sections 21 and 28 of the Act require that no person shall engage in the provision of private security services unless that person has been Security vetted, registered and licensed in accordance with the Act.”

Mahamed thus announced that PRSA has organised a sensitization forum that will take place on Wednesday, January 17 at 8.30 am at the Sarova Stanley Hotel.

“The forum is free of charge, however for ease of planning you are required to confirm your attendance through our email," he added.

The registration followed a directive from Interior PS Raymond Omollo in August 2023, indicating that the move was an essential step to foster a higher level of professionalism within the industry.

He said mandatory registration of private security officers will also provide a structured framework for monitoring and regulating their activities while on duty.

The move was also seen as a response to a recent incident where bouncers attacked journalists during the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) operation against shisha smoking at a popular nightclub in Nairobi's Kilimani estate.

The assault saw journalists drawn from the Nation Media Group (NMG), Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) and Standard Group Limited attacked by the club's bouncers dressed in black suits and red ties and attached to the Kettle House Bar and Grill in Nairobi.

The bouncers at the club, numbering about eight in total, spotted the scribes and charged at them, beating them and forcibly confiscating their recording equipment.

In the process, the journalists were injured and lost their valuables, with some of them being stabbed during the chaos.

Following this, NACADA condemned the assault on members of the Fourth Estate and announced that criminal charges would be brought against the perpetrators.

Standard Group photographer Boniface Okendo sustained injuries to the arms and legs. /STANDARD DIGITAL