Leaders and politicians have expressed their views on Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s recent criticism of National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Noordin Haji for allegedly failing to provide proper insights on key issues affecting the country.
Speaking from Mombasa on Wednesday, Gachagua lamented that since Haji succeeded Major General (Rtd) Philip Wachira Kameru in June 2023, the NIS has become dysfunctional, failing to adequately assess public sentiment, particularly concerning the now-withdrawn Finance Bill 2024.
“I sympathize with President Ruto because this information (the possibility of the youths demonstrating against the Finance Bill) was not available to him. NIS is mandated to provide such information, and that is where the problem is; we have a dysfunctional NIS that has exposed the President, the government, and the people of Kenya,” said Gachagua.
Reacting to Gachagua’s statement, security expert Eric Kokeyo claimed that the Deputy President’s remarks confirmed the country’s fears that the government is “dysfunctional.”
According to Kokeyo, Gachagua’s statement highlighted that the NIS is currently a demotivated team unable to execute its mandate effectively.
“The statement by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua yesterday only confirmed our fears that the two-year-old regime was already dysfunctional, in tatters, and a pale shadow of its original dream,” Kokeyo said.
On the implications of Gachagua’s statement for President Ruto, Kokeyo stated that the Deputy President has exposed his boss as a man relying on rumours to execute his agenda.
“When Gachagua openly admits that the loss of lives and destruction of property was caused by security negligence within the government, he has exposed his boss as naked and relying on unfounded rumours in the management of dissenting voices,” he asserted.
Gachagua also received heavy criticism from former Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho, who described the Deputy President’s statements as reckless and untimely.
According to Joho, Gachagua’s comments show division within the government at a time when leadership should demonstrate unity in addressing the crisis caused by the contentious Finance Bill 2024.
“I find it disturbing that a leader of his stature would issue such reckless statements at a time when the government needs to be seen as pulling in one direction. As a country, we find ourselves in unfamiliar territory, and it’s incumbent upon the leadership to restore confidence in its citizens rather than apportioning blame for failures that should be collectively owned,” Joho said.
The former governor also accused Gachagua of promoting tribalism by criticizing Haji’s leadership at the helm of the country’s intelligence agency.
“To make it worse, the sentiments by Mr. Rigathi Gachagua smack of tribal undertones, and that’s the least this country needs at this time,” he said.
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