Barely a day after the Kenyan Senate impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, President William Ruto has nominated Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki as the new Deputy President.
On Friday, Speaker Moses Wetang’ula announced the nomination in parliament, saying he has received a message from the president about Kindiki’s appointment to take Gachagua’s place after his impeachment.
Persecondnews recalls that Kenya’s Senate voted to dismiss Gachagua from office by impeachment on five out of 11 charges levelled against him on Thursday, in an unprecedented move that risks pushing the country towards a political crisis.
Last week, the National Assembly voted to impeach Gachagua, who assisted President William Ruto in winning the election two years ago but has come under fire from the president’s allies for alleged disloyalty and a string of provocative public remarks.
Fifty-four out of 67 senators voted to dismiss Gachagua on the first count of “gross violation of the constitution,” more than the two-thirds majority required under the law.
That makes him the first Kenyan president or deputy president forced from office by impeachment.
“Accordingly, His Excellency Rigathi Gachagua… ceases to hold office,” said Senate Speaker Amason Kingi.
Gachagua’s impeachment process is far from over, as he has filed several petitions to challenge his removal, and the chief justice has appointed a three-judge panel to review them.
Despite being unable to defend himself in the Senate due to illness, Gachagua has consistently denied the allegations and is likely to take his fight to the courts, potentially all the way to the Supreme Court.
When he failed to show up, his lawyer, Mr. Paul Muite, said the deputy president had been hospitalised with intense chest pains, urging the Senate to pause proceedings for a couple of days.
But the senate declined to do so, prompting Gachagua’s legal team to leave the chambers in protest.
Dan Gikonyo, a doctor treating Gachagua, told reporters the deputy president was admitted to a Nairobi hospital with heart trouble on Thursday afternoon but was now stable and would likely have to remain in hospital for 24-72 hours.
Some senators questioned the decision to proceed with the vote in Gachagua’s absence.
“We are to try a man in hospital because the only crime that Rigathi Gachagua has committed is a political crime, so he has to be removed out of the way, whatever it will take,” said Sen. John Methu.
But Sen. Moses Otieno Kajwang defended the move to impeach Gachagua, saying, “We must drain the swamp.”.
The new deputy president, Kindiki, a close ally of Ruto, has held the interior ministry post throughout Ruto’s two years as president.
He previously served as senator for Tharaka Nithi County and was a top contender to be Ruto’s running mate during the 2022 election.
Before Kindiki takes the oath of office, Parliament must later vote to approve his appointment.
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