This archive report was first published on 7 November 2019.
On November 7, 2019, the Nation reported that the National Intelligence Service (NIS) had flagged nine judges seeking promotion to the Appellate Court during their vetting process.
The judges were among 41 applicants, and adverse reports had been made against them following complaints levelled against them.
Their names were contained in correspondence between the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and the NIS regarding their background checks.
Statutory timelines were a concern, as the spy agency also flagged three lawyers in the list sent to JSC through a letter dated July 5 from Major-General Philip Kameru, addressed to Chief Registrar Anne Amadi.
Complaints were levelled against 21 of the 127 applicants, but only the nine judges and three lawyers were blacklisted.
The Judicial Service Commission accused the NIS of refusing to provide specific information against the affected judges, despite being given an extended period to do so.
Chief Registrar Anne Amadi wrote to the NIS on July 9, saying, 'We shall highly appreciate if you can provide us with more information by July 15 since the selection process has statutory timelines.'
However, the NIS failed to provide any further information, and the JSC went ahead to finalise its recruitment process.
Interviews for 35 candidates seeking promotion were held between June 17-27, and only 10 High Court judges and one lawyer were recommended for promotion to the Appellate Court.
