The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) has been harshly criticised by the Members of Parliament on account of what it has termed as a wave of political gangs and inflammatory rhetoric, with the members of Parliament warning that the inability to take decisive action would jeopardise the unity and stability of their country.

The concerns were brought to the National Assembly’s attention by the committee on cohesion and equal opportunity, led by its chairperson, Mandera West MP Adan Haji, during a meeting at the Bunge Towers on Friday, February 27, 2026. Faced with a heightened political period, legislators questioned the effectiveness of the commission to rebuke hate speech and politically instigated violence as the country passes through.

“Leaders of some of the peace committees have stayed in the office for more than 10 years, turning out to be the engineers of conflicts,” Haji noted.

Nyeri Town MP and Vice Chairman of the Committee, Duncan Mathenge, blamed the Commission for permitting a culture of intimidation and incitement to thrive in political rallies to take root.

“NCIC has normalised political gangs, insults, and hate speeches during public rallies across the country,” Mathenge claimed.

Mathenge added that this is a harmful tendency that can destabilise the country. He warned that the law might be compromised by not enforcing it, thus leading the nation back to the days of political instability.

A section of MPs accuses Gachagua of hate speech.

The lawmakers doubted the way the commission handled high-profile cases, such as the one that claimed the former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua, who allegedly had not honoured summons on allegations of hate speech. MPs wanted to know why no further action of enforcement has been taken.

Nominated MP Joseph Iraya threatened that the Commission’s inaction would encourage offenders and roll back progress achieved in encouraging peaceful political participation. Failure to take urgent actions means that the country will more likely fall into divisive and dangerous politics.

Committee Chairperson Adan Haji, too, was concerned with the efficiency of the county peace committees, with some of the long-serving officials having served longer and being reported to be the cause of the tensions instead of solving them. He demanded reforms and capacity building as a means of enhancing their professionalism and accountability.

NCIC’s defence

In his turn, NCIC Chief Executive Officer Daniel Giti warned that the Commission was doing all it could to cooperate with security agencies to probe and resolve instances of hate speech and political incitement.

In the case of Gachagua, Giti informed the Committee that the investigations were over and that the case had been handed over to the Director of Public Prosecutions to take the case further.

He further urged political leaders to foster peace and responsible behaviour, highlighting that they would have a responsibility in ensuring national cohesion. He continued that the commission was currently setting up regional offices to improve monitoring and better its response to hate speech and politically motivated violence.

The scrutiny in parliament indicates the increasing concern of the political atmosphere within the country, and the legislators demand that stiffer enforcement rules and regulations be implemented to avoid the situation and maintain unity before the next political elections.