The Kenyan senate has voted to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
The lawmakers voted Thursday evening despite a plea from
Paul Muite, Gachagua’s lawyer, to postpone the proceedings.
According to Muite, Gachagua was hospitalised after falling
very sick hours before the vote was set to hold.
Amason Kingi, the senate speaker, said Gachagua had until
5pm local time to show up.
The lawmakers impeached the vice president after his health
kept him away from the hearing.
The 59-year-old becomes the first deputy president to be
impeached in Kenya’s history.
At least 53 senators voted to uphold the first charge.
Gachagua, who faced 11 charges, was impeached on five
counts.
The charges include ground one of shareholding, ground four
of undermining the independence of judges, ground five of the National Cohesion
and Integrity Act 4, ground six of crimes under the National Cohesion Act, and
ground nine of gross misconduct (public attacks on the national security
intelligence service).
In June, Gachagua blamed the head of the intelligence agency
for not properly briefing President William Ruto and the government over the
magnitude of mass protests against unpopular tax hikes.
The vice president’s action was seen as an act of
undermining the president.
In total, 281 MPs voted in favour of the ouster motion
against 44. One MP abstained from voting.
“DP Gachagua ceases to hold office,” Kingi said after the
vote.
If Gachagua does not petition the vote in court, the
impeachment paves the way for the nomination and subsequent replacement by
Ruto, who has yet to publicly comment on the development.
The impeached deputy president has repeatedly insisted that
the proceedings were a “political witch hunt” and vowed to defend himself.
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