Kenya’s former Deputy President, Rigathi Gachagua, lost his impeachment case yesterday. This means that Gachagua, the 2nd Deputy President under the 2010 constitution, is now deprived of his right to hold a public office.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua was in court yesterday to hear the ruling on his impeachment case. However, he had no interest in being reinstated as Kenya’s Deputy President.
Instead, he hoped the court would rule that he should not have been impeached in the first place. That way, he would be free to vie for any public office in the future.
Gachagua’s Impeachment
Gachagua was elected Deputy President in August 2022, alongside the Presidential candidate, William Ruto. He was impeached by Parliament in October 2024, after falling out with President William Ruto.
Among the things Parliament accused Gachagua of were corruption and tribal discrimination. They also accused him of having broken his oath of office. So, Parliament voted almost unanimously to impeach him and passed the baton to the Senate.
The Senate concurred with Parliament and impeached him, too. Following the impeachment by the two houses, the Deputy President felt betrayed by the political class.
The Court gave Gachagua 50 million in Compensation.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua remains impeached. Yesterday, he left court with only a sh.50 million compensation package. The reason for this payment ruling seems confusing to the layman.
For one, the judges said they compensated Gachagua because, as his lawyers alleged, he was unfairly treated during the impeachment process. Yet the court still stood by the impeachment decision.
The defense had explained how Rigathi Gachagua appeared in person during the impeachment proceedings, yet the proceedings continued without him when he fell ill.
The former Deputy President had been rushed to the hospital during a court break. He was admitted to Karen Hospital, where he remained for 3 days. At the hospital, Gachagua was under the care of the Chief Cardiologist, Dr. Dan Gikonyo, who was recently summoned to testify in the impeachment case.
Rigathi Gachagua’s Other Mitigating Points
In their effort to discredit the impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua, his lawyers told the court that the Members of Parliament (MPs) and Senate, including the speakers of the two houses, were prejudiced against him.
The court dismissed the allegations, stating that impeachment is a political issue and that MPs are politicians. The judges also held that the speakers did not vote in the impeachment process; hence, they did not have any sway.
Another bone of contention was public participation. Although there were over 20 million registered voters when Kenyans voted for or against President Ruto’s ticket with his Deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, only 223,000 participated in the public participation hearings on Gachagua’s impeachment.
Gachagua’s lawyers pointed out that the public was not told the reasons for anyone’s desire to impeach the Deputy President. Hence, they had no basis for making presentations.
In response, the court declared that the number of participants was good enough to represent the voters. The judges also added that even if nobody had shown up, it would still not matter.
Rigathi Gachagua’s defense team also criticized the speed at which the impeachment process was rushed, noting it took just 7 days. To this, the court said it had nothing to say about the impeachment period. According to the judges, the court cannot purport to guide the Senate on how to utilize its time.
Plans to Appeal the Court’s Ruling
Rigathi Gachagua’s defense team said it would appeal yesterday’s court judgment. To the lawyers, it was not right for the judges to uphold the impeachment ruling.
The three-judge bench that heard and determined the former Deputy President’s impeachment case included Justice Fridah Mugambi, Justice Eric Ogola, and Justice Anthony Mrima.