Political Suspicions Over NIS Director’s Alleged Support for Odinga

Just a month after the Director of National Intelligence Service (NIS), Noordin Haji, was sworn in, some politicians from the ruling Kenya Kwanza coalition are now suspecting him of leaning towards the opposition.

Mr. Haji was inaugurated on June 14, 2023, taking over the reins of the NIS from Wachira Kameru.

Some politicians who attended the coalition meeting at State House Nairobi on July 15, 2023, pointed an accusing finger at him for what they perceived as a bias in favor of opposition leader Mr. Raila Odinga.

Furthermore, he is alleged to be in favor of an understanding between Mr. Odinga and President William Ruto.

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Moreover, his closeness to former President Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta has also been discussed.

“It should be understood that Mr. Haji has been seen meeting with both Mr. Odinga and Mr. Kenyatta. He should decide whether he is a member of the Azimio coalition or a public servant,” said one of the leaders at the State House meeting.

It was disclosed that some of these leaders proposed that Mr. Haji be censured in the National Assembly and the Senate, and if necessary, removed from office.

Some of these leaders complained that the NIS had been lax to the extent that during protests, gangs would emerge without the department’s knowledge, making the police’s job of quelling them more challenging.

In response, the majority leaders in the National Assembly and the Senate, Mr. Kimani Ichung’wa and Mr. Aaron Cheruiyot respectively, issued a joint statement to the media, saying they would be confronting the demonstrators.

In their joint statement, the two of them announced that starting from the coming Wednesday, when the protesters have announced their participation in demonstrations, “we will step forward as leaders, government supporters, and others, collaborating with security agencies to protect the lives of citizens, businesses, our country, and our democracy.”