Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has issued a firm directive ordering all private institutions and individuals holding Kenyans’ national identity cards as collateral to return them immediately or face legal action.
The order targets hospitals, informal money lenders commonly known as shylocks, shops, and even entertainment joints that have been keeping ID cards from members of the public over unpaid bills or debts.
Murkomen made the announcement while speaking in Kitui County during the inauguration ceremony of Nuu Sub-County on Wednesday, April 8.
He said the government had received worrying reports showing that many Kenyans are currently without their ID cards, not because they failed to register, but because the documents were left behind in different institutions as security for services, loans, or pending payments.
According to the CS, this trend has become a major concern, especially at a time when the country is pushing for increased voter registration ahead of the 2027 General Election.
He strongly emphasized that a national ID card is not money and should never be treated as a financial tool for settling debts. Murkomen made it clear that the identification document is not legal tender and cannot be exchanged for goods, services, loans, or access to entertainment venues.
He noted that some institutions have normalized the habit of keeping IDs whenever someone cannot clear a bill immediately, yet this practice is illegal and denies citizens access to essential services that require identification.
The CS further directed every Kenyan whose ID is currently being held by any hospital, shop, lender, landlord, or any other institution to go and collect it without delay.
He warned that if anyone is denied their document, they should immediately report the matter to the nearest police station so that action can be taken against those responsible.
Murkomen said no one has the legal right to keep another person’s ID as security, and anyone refusing to release such documents risks prosecution.
He added that access to national IDs is especially important now because many Kenyans need the documents to register as voters, open bank accounts, access government services, travel, apply for jobs, and use other official services.
Holding onto someone’s ID over a debt, he explained, unfairly locks them out of these important opportunities and can even affect their civic rights, including participation in elections.
The directive also comes as the government raises concern over the high number of uncollected national ID cards still lying in Huduma Centres and registration offices across the country.
Thousands of Kenyans who successfully applied for the documents are yet to pick them up, adding to the wider challenge of limited ID access among citizens.
The government has continued to urge applicants to visit their nearest collection centres and collect the ready documents as soon as possible.
The timing of the directive is significant because the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is currently carrying out continuous voter registration, with a target of bringing more than six million new voters onto the register before the 2027 polls.
By ensuring every Kenyan has access to their ID, the government hopes to remove one of the barriers that could prevent eligible citizens from registering and participating in the democratic process.
Overall, Murkomen’s order sends a strong warning to all institutions that have turned national ID cards into debt security tools.
The government now wants the practice to stop immediately, saying identity cards are personal legal documents that must remain with their rightful owners at all times.
The move is expected to help many Kenyans regain access to essential identification services while also boosting voter registration efforts nationwide.
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