The country’s security agencies are on the spot over
embarrassing security lapses that led to the deadly terrorist attack
that killed 67 people, including civilians, security forces and at least
five terrorists.
Also likely to come under serious
scrutiny are the all-too obvious contradicting statements issued by
senior government officials suggesting a deliberate campaign of
misinformation or bungling by the government in a bid to down-play the
magnitude of the terror attack.
Among those on the spot:
Joseph ole Lenku, Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government
As Cabinet Secretary in charge of national security, Mr Lenku
was the “official” government spokesman, charged with giving periodic
updates on the progress of the campaign to neutralise terrorists and
free hostages.
In one such update, Mr Lenku appeared to
contradict his Cabinet colleague in charge of Foreign Affairs, Ms Amina
Mohamed, on the possible involvement of a white female terrorist in the
attack.
Mr Lenku had also exuded confidence when he
declared that the evacuation of hostages had gone “very, very well” and
that Kenyan officials were “very certain” that few, if any hostages,
were left in the building, only for President Kenyatta to reveal that
there could be bodies trapped in the collapsed mall.
Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo
As
the man directly in charge of the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit, charged
with detecting and combating terrorism, Mr Kimaiyo will be hard-pressed
to explain the agency’s failure to detect movement of the huge cache of
arms to the scene of the terror attack.
He will also be
at pains to explain the rather slow police response and the glaring
absence of a central command and clear rivalry between the various
police units and the KDF, leading to the fatal shooting of the GSU
officer by KDF personnel.
Mr Kimaiyo may also want to
explain a rather misleading tweet to the effect that his forces had
“taken control of all the floors. We’re not here to feed attackers with
pastries...”, only for bursts of gunfire to erupt from the Mall the next
morning, indicating the terrorists were far from vanquished.
Defence Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo
Ms Omamo will be hard-pressed to explain the likely possibility that external aggressors could have sneaked in, even as the Kenya Defence Forces under her watch engaged Al-Shabaab at its doorstep in Somalia.
Ms Omamo will be hard-pressed to explain the likely possibility that external aggressors could have sneaked in, even as the Kenya Defence Forces under her watch engaged Al-Shabaab at its doorstep in Somalia.
Kenya Defence Forces chief, General Julius Karangi
Gen
Karangi will need to explain the lack of a clear command between the
various police units and KDF resulting in the fatal shooting of the GSU
officer by his officers.
National Intelligence Service Director General Michael Gichangi
National Intelligence Service Director General Michael Gichangi
Mr
Gichangi is on the spot over the agency’s failure to detect the
movement of the huge cache of arms used and why the Service failed to
detect the presence of the terrorists.
The agency came
under severe criticism during an emergency session by Parliament, with
the MPs demanding a major overhaul of the NIS, accusing it of gobbling
up billions of shillings without any tangible results.
“The intelligence department also needs radical surgery,” Lagdera MP Mohamed Shidiye said.
Directorate of Criminal Investigation Director Ndegwa Muhoro
Mr Muhoro will be held to account over his Directorate’s failure to detect the terrorists’ presence, movements and operations.
The Department of Immigration
The
department, which falls under the Ministry of Interior and Coordination
of National Government, will also be under pressure to explain the
issuance of travel documents to criminals from foreign countries after
it emerged some of the terrorists could be foreign nationals.
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