Kenya’s Senate will go ahead with impeachment hearings and a crucial vote to decide whether Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua should be removed from office, the Senate Speaker Amason Kingi confirmed.
This follows Gachagua’s absence from the proceedings, with his lawyer, Paul Muite, citing health concerns, as the deputy president was reportedly hospitalised with severe chest pains.
“The sad reality is that the deputy president of the republic of Kenya has been taken sick, very sick,” said Muite, urging the Senate to pause the proceedings for a few days. Gachagua had been expected to appear on Thursday to defend himself against 11 charges of impeachment.
Despite the request for an adjournment, senators voted against postponing the hearing. “The nays have it,” said Speaker Kingi, prompting Gachagua’s legal team to walk out in protest.
The impeachment motion was passed by the National Assembly last week, following increasing tensions between Gachagua and President William Ruto. Gachagua, who was instrumental in Ruto’s electoral success two years ago, has faced criticism from the president’s allies, citing his perceived disloyalty and a string of controversial public remarks.
While Gachagua denies the allegations, political analysts suggest that Ruto could face public backlash if his deputy is removed. “We are going to hear people demanding that the same thing that has been done on Gachagua be done to the president,” said Karuti Kanyinga, a professor at the University of Nairobi.
Many Kenyans view the impeachment proceedings as politically motivated, a sentiment echoed by Gachagua himself, who has called the process a political lynching based on falsehoods.
Among the charges laid out against Gachagua are accusations of inciting ethnic hatred and allegations of amassing properties worth over $40 million since taking office, despite reporting a net worth of around $6 million before his appointment. Mwengi Mutuse, a lawmaker from Ruto’s coalition, made these claims during Wednesday’s session.
Elisha Ongoya, a member of Gachagua’s legal team, dismissed the allegations, arguing they were unsupported and speculative.
If two-thirds of the Senate votes in favour of the impeachment, Gachagua will become the first Kenyan deputy president to be removed under the 2010 constitution.
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