Kenyan Senate Impeaches Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua While Hospitalized

The Kenyan Senate has voted to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, marking the first removal of a deputy president since the country’s 2010 constitutional reforms.

During the session on Thursday, October 17, the Senate found Gachagua guilty on five out of the 11 charges against him, including corruption, money laundering, insubordination, ethnic divisiveness, and undermining the government.

The Senate only needed to convict him on one charge to secure his removal.

Gachagua’s impeachment follows a similar vote by the National Assembly last week, where the motion to remove him was overwhelmingly passed.

He has consistently denied the allegations but was unable to testify in his defense due to hospitalization for severe chest pains. Despite his absence, the Senate proceeded with the vote.

The session became chaotic earlier on Thursday when Gachagua’s lawyer, Paul Muite, requested a delay, citing his client’s serious medical condition.

“The sad reality is that the deputy president of the Republic of Kenya has been taken seriously ill,” Muite said, asking for a brief adjournment.

However, a motion to delay the hearing until Saturday was rejected by the Senate, leading Gachagua’s legal team to walk out in protest.

Kenyan President William Ruto, who has experienced a strained relationship with Gachagua in recent months, has yet to respond to the impeachment.