In becoming the first NSW Premier to remove a sitting head of the state's corruption watchdog, Mike Baird is guilty of either a spectacular bungle or an act of pure political cowardice.

Megan Latham being removed from independent office and forced to reapply for her job with two years remaining of a five-year term is unprecedented.

It brings to an end a tumultuous period in the life of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, but may also have damaged its standing in the public eye.

Under Latham, ICAC successfully exposed the NSW Liberal Party's dodgy fundraising practises during Operation Spicer, which ended the career of many of Baird's Liberal colleagues.