This archive report was first published on 30 June 2019.
On June 30, 2019, I met with a retired senior security intelligence officer who shared with me a story about a plot to assassinate former President Daniel arap Moi.
The story began with a book co-authored by journalist Joseph Karimi and Philip Ochieng, titled 'The Kenyatta Succession.' The book claimed that a special police unit had been formed in Nakuru under the command of Rift Valley provincial police boss James Mungai to assassinate Vice President Moi and other top government officials.
However, my source revealed that the story was fabricated by influential Attorney General Charles Njonjo to win sympathy for Moi and purge the security system of unwanted characters.
According to my source, Njonjo had two immediate tasks after Mzee Kenyatta's death: settle scores with those in key government positions who would have been opposed to a Moi presidency and win sympathy for the new man at State House.
One of the people who had no time for Vice President Moi was Rift Valley provincial police boss James Mungai, who openly treated him with contempt. With Moi in power, Njonjo urgently had to bring Mungai down to his knees to acknowledge who the boss was.
My source explained that Njonjo came up with the spin that the anti-stock theft unit formed under Mungai's supervision was a secret assassination squad. This was done to have an excuse to purge the security system of characters unwanted by the new regime.
My source, a senior officer at the police Special Branch head office, laughed at the idea of a plot to kill Moi to stop him from taking over from President Kenyatta, saying it was ridiculous.
He concluded by saying that whoever dreamt of the story of pumping bullets into a dead body at State House and dipping corpses in a tank of sulphuric acid must have been a great admirer of mercenaries Bob Denard and 'Mad' Mike Hoare, but forgot that Kenya isn't a banana republic.
