Court affirms Noordin Haji's appointment as NIS boss
Crime and Justice
By
Kamau Muthoni
| Mar 12, 2026
Noordin Haji is sworn in as the new Director-General of the NIS at State House, Nairobi. [File Courtesy]
The High Court in Nairobi on Thursday affirmed the nomination, approval, and subsequent appointment of the National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director General Noordin Haji.
Justice Lawrence Mugambi on Thursday said that United Kingdom-based Kenyan Eliud Matindi had not proved that the process was either illegal, unreasonable, or a failure to observe procedural rules laid down in the law.
The Judge said that courts could only interfere if and when it would be proved that the constitutional bodies had not complied with the law or their actions were in contravention of the constitution.
“The petitioner has thus not established any objective ground for this court to interfere with the nomination, approval, and appointment of the 5th respondent as the Director General of NIS. The Upshot, the application lacks merit and is hereby dismissed,” said Justice Mugambi.
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Mr Haji was appointed on June 13, 2023.
Justice Mugambi said that Matindi was inviting the court to take up the role of the National Assembly’s departmental committee on defense, intelligence, and foreign relations, the Public Service Commission, and the August House by asking it to weigh whether the senior lawyer was validly appointed by President William Ruto.
“ In my humble view, the second (committee) and the fourth respondents (PSC), who are vested with the requisite authority to conduct the approval process, are the ones best suited to evaluate every concern, including the relevance and weight they will attach to the issue raised, and exercise their discretion when deciding on the suitability of the nominee. The court cannot usurp this specific mandate by subsuming its opinion to that body bestowed that particular mandate of vetting,” said Justice Mugambi.
The Judge observed that the NIS Act is silent on the president’s discretion in appointing a person he prefers to head the security body.
In his case, Matindi wanted the court to quash the appointment, claiming that his case raised questions on the application of the law during the process.
However, the Attorney General, the National Assembly PSC, and the intelligence agency boss urged the court to dismiss the case.
They argued that Matindi had not produced any evidence to support his case. They also separately told the court that it could not reconstitute itself as a vetting and approving body, as argued by Matindi.
According to them, Mr Haji had met all requirements for appointment as the Director General.
On the other hand, the former Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) told the court that Matindi’s case was based on his mandate while he was heading the country’s prosecution.
He argued that his action of withdrawing cases in the year 2021-2022 was in line with his then powers and discretion.
According to him, there was nothing to show that he was not competent or lacked integrity. He asserted that Matindi had an opportunity to raise his objection before the committee, during public participation, or vetting process before the PSC and the National Assembly, which he did not.
At the same time, the senior lawyer also argued that Matindi did not raise any complaint about his leadership or actions before the PSC during his tenure as the DPP.
He urged the court to dismiss the case and condemn Matindi to pay the cost.