Kenya: Deputy President's Impeachment Trial Begins

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Facts

  • Kenya's Senate began the impeachment trial against Deputy Pres. Rigathi Gachagua on Wednesday, just hours after a three-judge bench declined a request to halt proceedings — the latest of at least 26 petitions his legal team has filed so far.[1][2][3][4]
  • This comes as the National Assembly — the lower house of parliament — approved his impeachment last week on 11 charges, including corruption, inciting ethnic hatred, and undermining government.[1][2][4][5]
  • Speaking before the Senate on Wednesday, Gachagua pleaded not guilty to all allegations. Describing the charges as politically motivated, he told senators to make their decision 'without intimidation and coercion.'[6][7]
  • Kenya's Pres. William Ruto picked Gachagua as his running mate in the 2022 elections. However, Gachagua claims that Ruto has blessed the impeachment.[6][8]
  • A vote is expected on Thursday evening. A two-thirds majority is needed to make Gachagua the first deputy president to be impeached since the possibility was introduced in Kenya's 2010 Constitution.[5][6][9]
  • If senators vote to remove Gachagua from office, the speaker will publish the decision and announce a vacancy in the deputy president's office. Afterwards, the National Assembly will likely hold a special sitting on Friday to vote on his successor.[1][2][10][11]

Sources: [1]BBC News, [2]HonestReporting, [3]The EastAfrican, [4]Capital News, [5]Al Jazeera, [6]Associated Press, [7]Parliament of Kenya, [8]Reuters, [9]CNBC Africa, [10]Nation and [11]The Standard.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by The Conversation. Apart from being the first time this process has been used in Kenya, the looming impeachment of Gachagua is no shock for the nation, with most Kenyans supporting the proceedings. Presidents have historically fired their deputies once their partners become more of a liberty or threat than supporter, so this series of events was to be expected.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Council on Foreign Relations. It's unlikely that removing a scapegoat such as Gachagua from office would lead to any major development for governance in Kenya — all this impeachment mess is just a temporary distraction from real issues affecting Kenyans everyday. Rather than wasting time and energy on this matter, authorities should focus on addressing real concerns.

Predictions