The Kenyan Senate has impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, marking the first time in the nation’s history that a deputy president has been removed from office.
On Thursday evening, lawmakers proceeded with the vote despite a request from Gachagua’s lawyer, Paul Muite, to delay the session.
Muite explained that Gachagua had been hospitalized after falling seriously ill just hours before the scheduled vote.
Senate Speaker Amason Kingi announced that Gachagua had until 5 p.m. local time to appear.
Due to his absence, the Senate went ahead with the impeachment proceedings. Gachagua, 59, faced a total of 11 charges, of which he was impeached on five counts.
The charges included allegations of shareholding improprieties, undermining judicial independence, violations of the National Cohesion and Integrity Act, and gross misconduct for publicly criticizing the national security intelligence service.
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One of the pivotal moments leading to his impeachment was Gachagua’s public criticism in June, where he blamed the head of the intelligence agency for failing to properly inform President William Ruto and the government about the scale of protests against tax hikes.
His remarks were widely seen as an act of undermining the president.
In the Senate vote, at least 53 senators supported the first charge. Earlier, 281 members of parliament had voted in favor of the impeachment motion, with only 44 opposing and one abstention.
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