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In the last few weeks, Kenyans have watched with amazement as the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Noordin Haji  go on a case-dropping spree.

Initial disquiet has now risen to alarm. Kenyans have a right to be very alarmed at this turn of events.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions was established by the Constitution of Kenya 2010 to institute and undertake all criminal prosecutions against any person in a court of law. The Director can also order the Inspector-General of Police to undertake any criminal investigations and guide their conduct. Key, however, is that he is completely independent in performance of his duties, and has security of tenure.

Against this backdrop, what he did was inexcusable. It was very disturbing indeed to hear Haji actually admitting that he was put under pressure to prosecute people by a police officer far junior to him in rank. Even more astonishing is his admission that he charged people in politically motivated cases before he had all the evidence. What conclusions can Kenyans draw from all this about the DPP?

One is to question his competence. If a case can actually approve for prosecution a shoddy case, then the only conclusion one can draw is that he is not competent to hold that job. In this country, people have greatly suffered as a result of being dragged before the courts on trumped-up charges, and harassed by police.

Secondly, Kenyans must wonder- just how many more cases before courts are equally flawed, and people are suffering because of being wrongly prosecuted? Who can trust any case he prosecutes now?

Ahmed Rashid Hassan, the policeman recently charged with extrajudicial killings states that it has been six years since that incident, and wonders “about the turn of events.” He’s asking, why now? This is exactly what Kenyans are wondering about what is going on in the DPP’s office.

To correct this chaos which has engulfed the criminal justice system, the Chief Justice should demand that the DPP review the basis of all pending cases he has brought to the courts. Appeal courts should equally look at his cases where people have been convicted with a keen eye.

Thirdly, the claims by Haji that he was pressurised to charge people surely takes the cake. Was not the very establishment of his office meant to cure just this very hazard? Who will compensate those people who were hounded out of office after he charged them in court, the money they spent in legal fees, and their destroyed reputations? It cannot be business as usual!

The reason why independent offices were formed is because the work they do is so critical to the wellbeing of Kenyans. Holders must perform at 100 per cent.

Haji really has no excuse.

The chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commissions (IEBC), Wafula Chebukati, demonstrated what it means to be the holder of an independent office, and the lengths to which one must go to defend the Constitution. Chebukati stood his ground at great personal risk during the August 9 elections, after the deep state put him under enormous pressure to influence his decision.

Haji’s actions have dealt a major blow to the confidence by Kenyans in his stewardship. He has confirmed that Kenyans who kept raising the alarm that his prosecutions were politically motivated were indeed correct. And he knew it. In other words, he was complicit in the weaponisation of the criminal justice system against Kenyans.

Haji failed Kenyans. It is unlikely that the person who has caused such a precipitous fall in public confidence in the DPP’s office is the one who will inject fresh confidence in that office. That office needs a completely new face, a new ethos, a new resolve to clean up the mess in there, and stand firm against all influence from whichever quota.

Haji must give way to allow the rebuilding of that office. He must do the only honourable thing, and resign.

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