MPs 'Harrassed' by KDF Officers

Members of the National Assembly Defence and Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday lamented over alleged cold treatment from the military and National Intelligence Service (NIS) whenever they attempted to scrutinise their budgets.

Appearing before the Budget and Appropriations Committee, the lawmakers argued that the security officials had been accusing the Defence Committee of trying to bring down the government when they raised questions on the expenditure of the two state organs.

Led by Vice-Chairman Barre Shill, the legislators disclosed that whenever they tried to question the military and NIS operations, they would always be met with excuses and accusations.

“Our soldiers in El Adde were killed. When the committee tried to question those issues, it was very difficult to get an answer. It got to a point where we were being accused to the Head of State that we are the people who want to bring him down. That is the way things are, and I will say the truth!.

“The Chief of Defence Forces and all his intelligence people come before you, you ask simple questions and they say 'we can't give that number now' and give a lot of excuses, and when you insist, you are accused of being an enemy of the President," insisted the Vice-chair.

The Members of Parliament pleaded for a meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta to report how the Committee had been 'suffering'.

"We have been asking for a meeting with the President, but State House will not allow us, and we really wanted to tell and show him the other side of the coin," complained Shill.

Earlier in the year, members of the National Assembly Defence Committee accused the Kenya Defence Forces bosses of being rude after they failed to reveal the number of soldiers killed in Somalia in the El Adde attack.

Read Also: KDF Bosses are Rude, MPs Complain

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