Kenya’s Senate has impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, marking a historic moment as he becomes the first deputy president in the country’s history to be removed from office. The impeachment process took place on Thursday evening, despite an appeal from Gachagua’s lawyer, Paul Muite, who requested a delay. Muite informed the Senate that Gachagua had been hospitalized after falling severely ill just hours before the vote. However, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi ruled that Gachagua had until 5 p.m. local time to attend the proceedings, but the deputy president’s absence due to his health issues led the legislators to proceed with the vote.
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The 59-year-old deputy president faced a total of 11 charges, and the Senate ultimately impeached him on five counts. These charges included allegations related to shareholding issues, undermining the independence of judges, violations of the National Cohesion and Integrity Act, and gross misconduct. One of the most notable accusations was Gachagua’s public criticism of Kenya’s national security intelligence service, which allegedly compromised national security. This followed an incident in June where Gachagua publicly blamed the head of the intelligence agency for failing to provide proper briefings to President William Ruto and his administration regarding the scale of public protests against controversial tax increases. Gachagua’s comments were widely interpreted as a direct challenge to the president’s authority.
The Senate vote to impeach Gachagua saw overwhelming support, with 53 senators voting to uphold the first charge. Meanwhile, the National Assembly had previously voted on the matter, with 281 MPs supporting the motion to impeach, while 44 opposed it, and one abstained. This decisive outcome underscores the significant political pressure Gachagua faced, leading to his historic impeachment from office.
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