By Mdadisi Mmoja
In recent years, a barrage of criticism from politicians, including then-Deputy President William Ruto—now President has battered government institutions like the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), and the National Intelligence Service (NIS). The NIS, an agency expected to operate with quiet discretion, has borne the brunt of accusations ranging from bias and incompetence to alleged involvement in abductions.
Though Ruto admitted to having differences with the NIS at the time, he was astute enough to avoid outright assaults on the institution or its former Director-General, Maj-Gen Philip Kameru. Instead, he kept his criticisms measured. That caution didn’t extend to his campaign team, however. On 8 June 2021, through the UDA’s lawyer, they penned a sharp letter to the NIS, questioning claims by a senior government official that an intelligence report had forecast victory for Azimio’s presidential hopeful, Raila Odinga. Ruto’s team branded it a reckless misuse of intelligence and pressed for clarity on whether the NIS Director-General had authorised its release. The UDA didn’t stop there, threatening legal action if no response came, and vowing to urge the Director of Public Prosecutions to investigate those behind the leak—or its exploitation for propaganda.
“A service like this will always be under scrutiny,” a senior government official told The Weekly Vision. “It gathers intelligence for state agencies and aids law enforcement in tackling serious crimes and threats to national security.” The official noted that such gripes are routine, especially on matters of insecurity, given the NIS’s critical role in spotting threats and advising the president and government on potential perils.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has been among the NIS’s fiercest critics. On 19 December last year, he claimed the agency had set agents to shadow him, alleging an NIS officer trailed him from Nairobi to Makueni County during a visit to Kalawa Ward in Mbooni Constituency. “National Intelligence Service, please put this vehicle and officer to better use strengthening our country’s security. Following us to Makueni was a pointless waste of fuel and effort,” Gachagua said wryly. In June, he went further, calling for NIS Director-General Noordin Haji to resign over what he called a failure to provide intelligence that might have averted the deadly unrest sparked by the Finance Bill 2024 protests on 25 June. Gachagua argued the NIS’s shortcomings fanned the chaos and loss of life. By October, he stood firm, insisting his outspokenness was about holding public officials to account.
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi has also weighed in, pinning ultimate responsibility on President Ruto. On 14 January, Muturi revealed a chilling ordeal: his son, Leslie Muturi, had been abducted by NIS officers, only freed after Ruto personally intervened with Haji. In a detailed police statement, Muturi recounted his fruitless attempts to reach senior officials, including Haji. “An NIS contact told me their officers had my son. I shared this with friends, and we agreed I should try Haji again. Despite repeated calls, he never answered,” Muturi said.
The NIS was already in the spotlight before Muturi spoke out. Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja and DCI head Mohammed Amin had acknowledged abductions were occurring, though they denied involvement. During his parliamentary vetting, Haji suggested recruiting lower-ranking officers to gather intelligence from remote areas, a move he said would better align the NIS’s resources with Kenya’s diverse threats.
The agency is now working to launch the Intelligence Service Complaints Board (ISCB) to boost accountability and professionalism. The Board will investigate grievances against the Service, its Director-General, or its members. Haji, during his vetting, admitted at least one NIS officer had been tied to an extrajudicial killing—a rare glimpse into internal flaws.
President Ruto chairs the National Security Council (NSC), which oversees security organs alongside the Cabinet Secretaries for Defence, Foreign Affairs, and Interior, the Chief of Defence Forces, the NIS Director-General, and the Inspector-General of Police. Haji succeeded Maj-Gen Philip Kameru, appointed by President Kenyatta in August 2014 and serving until 2020. A former Military Intelligence chief, Kameru is lauded for cutting terror threats and bolstering security, despite flak from juniors over staff welfare neglect. He’s widely seen as one of the NIS’s most effective leaders.
