Ruto’s UDA Party Demands Answers over Alleged NIS Report Showing Raila Will Win August 9th Elections

The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party has written to the National Intelligence Service (NIS) raising questions about an alleged report showing that Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition presidential candidate Raila Odinga will win the August 9th elections.

Details of the alleged intelligence report were disclosed by Interior Principal Secretary Dr. Karanja Kibicho, who claimed that Odinga will clinch the presidency in the first round by garnering 60 percent of the votes cast.

Through lawyer Elias Mutuma, the UDA party argues that the NIS has the mandate to ensure that no actor within the public or private sector leverages its resources to undermine the quest for a free and fair electoral process.

"Whereas such utterances would ordinarily be dismissed as unfounded, populist, insignificant and inconsequential, they are in this instance of grave concern to our client considering that the source of such information has been attributed to NIS reports by none other than the Principal Secretary of Interior and Coordination of National Government whose Cabinet Secretary sits in the National Security Council," Mutuma says in a letter to NIS.

He adds: "The Director-General of NIS is the steward of all reports of the NIS. It is the DG’s obligation to ensure that NIS reports underwritten by public funds serve the national interest and promote national security and are therefore kept confidential."

UDA further raises questions regarding the measures put in place to prevent the leakage of such a report, which it claims advance the interests and cause of the Azimio-One Kenya coalition while undermining the confidence of Kenyans in the electoral process. 

"The issues canvassed in this complaint raise substantial breaches to the National Intelligence Service Act and warrant immediate and urgent inquiry by this Board given the risk posed by the reckless use of intelligence information to the peace and security of the nation," UDA adds.

UDA gave the NIS board a 14-day ultimatum to respond to their concerns or else they will involve the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and take the matter to court. 

"The Complainant further reserves the right to seek the intervention of the Director of Public Prosecutions to prosecute those responsible for infringing the express provisions of the NIS Act arising from the use of classified information otherwise than in the strict course of duty," added Mutuma.