1971 insurrection: The coup attempt against Jomo Kenyatta that history rarely mentions

Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) is today lauded among Africa’s most disciplined, a rarity on a continent plagued by military takeovers even to date.

Hidden in the archives of history lies a rarely told story – one that saw Kenya’s founding father, President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, nearly toppled by his own generals.

While the failed 1982 coup attempt against President Daniel Arap Moi is deeply etched in Kenya’s collective memory, few recall the 1971 plot, a conspiracy hatched in the shadows.

Interestingly, this initial plot to topple Kenyatta’s regime emerged shortly after Idi Amin’s brutal overthrow of President Milton Obote in neighbouring Uganda.

Obote’s ouster in 1971 sent ripples of fear throughout the region, raising concerns of copycat coups.

This instability drew the keen attention of Western powers, particularly the United Kingdom and the United States, who closely monitored the escalating political tensions within Kenya both before and after Amin’s power grab.

Declassified British and American intelligence reports reveal that by 1969, murmurs of a military takeover were growing louder within KDF, with top officers pondering the nation’s post-Kenyatta future.

General Joseph Ndolo

At the heart of the 1971 plot was Major General Joseph Ndolo, then Kenya’s Chief of General Staff, who was positioned to assume power if the coup succeeded.

British officials were so concerned about Ndolo’s intentions that by early 1971, they warned of a credible threat of a coup within 18 months – a development they feared could disrupt, though not necessarily damage, their interests in Kenya.

In response, the UK discreetly reinforced its ties with the Kenyan military and offered quiet counsel to the government to prevent a rebellion.

Major General Ndolo was said to have hosted multiple gatherings where he laid the groundwork for the coup.

Chief Justice Kitili Mwendwa, the country’s first African head of the judiciary, was also drawn into the scheme, advising on how the constitutional order could be seized.

However, Ndolo’s deputy Brigadier Jackson Mulinge, who also hailed from the Kamba community, was against the coup plot.

Gema

Ndolo’s grievances were not without context. Oath-taking ceremonies, initiated by the Kikuyu, Embu, and Meru communities – collectively known as GEMA – had become widespread.

These oaths, often administered forcibly in some districts, bound individuals to support Kikuyu dominance and resist ceding power to other ethnic groups, particularly the Luo.

When attempts were made to infiltrate the army with these oaths, Ndolo reacted sharply.

He ordered troops reassigned from one barracks to another to curb the spread of ethnic loyalty within the forces.

Adding to the tension was the perception of tribal favouritism within the military hierarchy.

The CIA reported that Ndolo was frustrated by the accelerated promotion of a Kikuyu officer, said to be positioned to bypass Mulinge who was next in line to head the military as per KDF’s succession doctrine.

After the coup was averted, Mulinge would eventually succeed Ndolo [after his resignation] and become the longest-serving military boss before retiring into politics.

Adding to the tension was the appointment of Dr. Njoroge Mungai, a Kenyatta confidant, as Minister of Defense – further entrenching Kikuyu dominance at the highest levels of government.

Ndolo also lamented the army’s lack of modern arms during the Shifta War against Somali insurgents.

Amid this backdrop, the GEMA association was hastily registered.

On March 10, 1971, within hours of submitting its documents, then-Attorney General Charles Njonjo certified GEMA’s existence – a move widely interpreted as a bulwark against any political threat to Kenyatta.

12 tried over coup

But the seeds of insurrection had already taken root.

Senior officers in the military, more so the army, became increasingly wary of Kikuyu intentions; they feared that Kenyatta would seek to ensure his control of the army by promoting a Kikuyu to commander, even though a Kamba was next in line.

The uncovering of the coup plot led to Kenyatta’s rapprochement with the military and the political class, while others were tried.

Kenyatta’s relationship with the military improved, with the president publicly praising their service.

In an attempt to appease the Luo community, the government released former Vice President and then opposition leader Jaramogi Oginga Odinga from detention on March 27, 1971, shortly after the coup plot was uncovered.

Also, following the uncovering of the coup plot, one of Kenya’s most dramatic and highly publicised trials commenced.

In the trial, 12 men were tried for plotting the coup and collectively sentenced to 91 years in prison.

The 12 included namely;

Joseph Ouma Muga

Juvenalis Benedict Aoko

Joshua Omoth Ooko

Silvanus Oduor

Eliud Kipserem Lang’at

Eric Kimtai Chepkuony

Elijah Mukaya Sabwe

Jafetha Oyangi Mbaja

Ahmed Abdi Aden

Joseph Daniel Owino

Gideon Mutiso

Fredrick Collins Omondi

Julius Nyerere factor

Dr. Ouma Muga, a geography lecturer at Makerere University, was the first accused and had sought Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere’s support, requesting 39 machine guns, $90,000 in cash, and a Tanzanian military presence near the Kenyan border.

Nyerere, loyal to Kenyatta, swiftly rejected the overture and even leaked details of the conspiracy to the Kenyan government.

A testimony by then-Yatta MP Gideon Mutiso directly implicated Major General Ndolo, admitting to several meetings to discuss the coup.

Interestingly, despite the presence of high-profile individuals, the prosecution emphasised the role of Joseph Daniel Owino – a former low-ranking soldier with limited education – as the supposed ringleader, a claim met with scepticism by the trial magistrate.

As an officer Cadet, Owino had been caught marshaled in 1964 for incitement to mutiny at Lanet barracks and jailed for seven years.

With Owino dismissed as the coup’s ringleader, further investigation suggested Captain Frederick Collins Omondi, an Air Force pilot, played a more significant operational role in the 1971 attempted coup than initially thought.

Frederick Omondi and Hezekiah Ochuka

As an Air Force pilot, Captain Omondi had access to various barracks across the country, positioning him as the coup’s coordination and liaison officer. He was also earmarked for a cabinet slot had the coup succeeded.

However, the plan went into disarray on D-Day when the group sought the support of Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere.

Nyerere not only turned down their request but also facilitated the leak of the coup plot to President Jomo Kenyatta, forcing Omondi to flee – ironically, to Tanzania.

Upon arrival, Omondi surrendered to Tanzanian authorities and was later repatriated to Kenya through a prisoner swap program.

Captain Omondi had joined the Air Force in 1964 and was among the first five Kenyan flight cadets enrolled for pilot training in Israel.

The group included James Mukirai, David Kanagi, Hannington Apudo, and Dedan Gichuru. They were part of a cohort of 20 cadets – five each from Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Brazil – who trained at the Haifa Flying School in Israel for a year.

Captain Omondi distinguished himself during training and was awarded the Sword of Honour by President Jomo Kenyatta, becoming the first Air Force personnel in independent Kenya to receive such a decoration. He was just 20 years old at the time.

Shortly afterwards, the five cadets were dispatched for further training at the prestigious Royal Air Force Feltwell Base in the UK.

Stalled careers, tribalism

Due to his outstanding performance, Omondi’s stature in the military continued to grow. He began pushing for the indigenisation of the Kenya Air Force, which was still heavily dominated by British officers, particularly in senior ranks.

As the push for reforms gained momentum, Captain Omondi inspired a wave of young recruits from his Luo community, especially from his home area, to join the military, particularly the Air Force.

Among those who joined the Air Force courtesy of Omondi was his villagemate Hezekiah Ochuka, who would later lead the 1982 coup attempt.

In addition to their shared origins, Omondi and Ochuka shared similar attributes and faced comparable challenges within the forces.

Both men were charismatic, skilled orators and effective mobilizers. However, despite graduating as outstanding students, their military careers stagnated.

Captain Omondi’s progression was notably slow, believed to be due to tribal politics.

By the time he was charged over the 1971 coup attempt, he was still a captain, while his coursemate Dedan Gichuru – hailing from President Kenyatta’s tribe – had risen to the rank of lieutenant colonel in roughly the same period.

 Similarly, Ochuka led the 1982 coup while still holding the rank of senior private, despite nearly a decade of service and only one promotion.

Both Omondi and Ochuka attributed their stalled careers to the political fallout between President Jomo Kenyatta and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga in 1966, which had led to the marginalisation of the Luo community in government and security circles.

Kenyatta’s decision

Following the 1971 plot’s exposure, questions arose about why President Kenyatta spared Major General Joseph Ndolo from prosecution.

According to a British High Commission cable, Vice President Daniel Moi conveyed that Kenyatta decided against prosecuting Ndolo, believing that the general had acted out of misguided loyalty rather than malice.

Recognising Ndolo’s decades of service, Kenyatta allowed him to retire honourably.

He died on April 6, 1984, in a road accident while driving from Mombasa to his rural home.

Chief Justice Kitili Mwendwa, deeply implicated in the coup plot, resigned and also maintained a low profile.

His wife, Neva Mwendwa, entered politics and won a parliamentary seat in 1974. Mwendwa himself reemerged briefly in politics before dying in a car accident in 1985.

General Ogolla

What President Kenyatta did with Major General Joseph Ndolo mirrors President William Ruto’s situation with the late Chief of Defence Forces General Francis Ogolla.

Ruto, even before Ogolla’s death, spoke about how the late CDF was among the team that went to Bomas of Kenya in an attempt to overturn his presidential victory in August 2022.

The President was faced with a tough choice in 2023 when General Robert Kariuki Kibochi retired, and Ogolla was to automatically replace him as per the military succession doctrine.

Speaking at Ulinzi Sports Complex in Lang’ata during a funeral service for Ogolla, Ruto revealed that he had a one-on-one meeting with Ogolla over the poll dispute in the lead-up to his appointment as CDF.

Ruto said that Ogolla told him he had no defence over what had happened at Bomas.

“He said Mr President, I have no defence. I will not try and defend myself. It was wrong, and you have three choices,” he said

Ruto said Ogolla told him he has the option of sending him to a court marshall, have him retired or forgive him.

“That evening, I went home and reflected on what Ogolla had told me. In the reflection, I thought of my own story and my own episode at the ICC at The Hague, where circumstances conspired and I was there,” he stated.

Ruto noted that he ignored calls from his inner circle not to promote Ogolla but remained steadfast with his resolve to appoint him owing to his experience in security matters.

The President appointed Ogolla as Chief of Defence Forces on April 28, 2023, replacing Kibochi, whose tenure had come to an end

Unfortunately, Ogalla died in a helicopter crash on April 18, 2024.