Kenyan senators on Thursday voted to remove Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua from office.
The move makes him the first deputy president to be removed from office since Kenya’s 2010 constitution introduced impeachment procedures.
The 59-year-old faced 11 charges, including corruption, insubordination and money laundering, which he vigorously denied as politically motivated.
Gachagua’s downfall began when allies of President William Ruto accused him of disloyalty.
The Senate found him guilty of five charges, including practicing ethnically divisive politics and threatening judges, but cleared him of six, including corruption.
The impeachment process was marked by drama.
Gachagua was hospitalized with severe chest pains, prompting his lawyer, Paul Muite, to urge the Senate to pause proceedings.
“The sad reality is that the deputy president of the republic of Kenya has been taken sick, very sick,” Muite said.
Despite this, senators voted to proceed with the impeachment hearing, leading Gachagua’s legal team to withdraw in protest.
Speaker Amason Kingi’s motion to adjourn the hearing until Saturday was rejected, with Kingi stating, “The nays have it.”
However, in another dramatic development on Friday, the Nairobi High Court temporarily suspended the senate’s decision to impeach Gachagua.
Gachagua proceeded to the high court earlier to stop the implementation on grounds of “monumental constitutional issues”.
Led by Chacha Mwita, the court temporarily halted the impeachment pending a hearing on the petition.
Also, the court suspended the appointment of interior minister, Kithure Kindiki, by President Ruto for the post of deputy president.
The national assembly approved Kindiki’s appointment on Friday morning.
Mwita said: “Upon considering the pleadings, supporting affidavit, and attachments, I am satisfied that the petition and application raise monumental constitutional issues touching not only at the heart of a functioning constitution but also its fundamental tenets of the rule of law and human rights.
“Due to the issues raised in the petition and application and the urgency demonstrated, a conservatory order is hereby issued, staying the implementation of the resolution by the Senate upholding the impeachment charges against the petitioner (Gachagua) until October 24, when the matter will be mentioned before the bench to be appointed by the chief justice for appropriate orders and action.”
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