Kenyan senators have voted to remove Vice President Rigathi Gachagua from office even though he failed to testify in his impeachment case after his lawyer said he was rushed to hospital.
In one of the most dramatic days in Kenya’s recent political history, Gachagua was due to appear in the Senate after lunch to answer for himself, a day after he pleaded not guilty to 11 charges.
However, Gachagua, popularly known as Riggy G, did not appear and his lawyer asked for the case to be adjourned saying that his client was suffering from chest pain and was being treated by doctors at The Karen Hospital.
The senators chose to proceed with the case without him, prompting the defense team to leave the room.
The refusal of members of parliament to adjourn the trial until Saturday – as long as it was allowed by law – shows how determined they were to oust Gachagua, months after he fell out with President William Ruto.
Last week, the majority of MPs in the National Assembly – the lower house of parliament – voted to impeach him, setting the stage for his two-day trial in the Senate.
Gachagua, a wealthy businessman from the vote-rich central Mount Kenya region who was present in the house this morning, described the prosecution as “political harassment”.
On Thursday evening, two-thirds of the 67 members of parliament were required to face five charges including inciting racial division and violating their oath of office – enough to be removed from office.
He has been cleared of six charges including corruption and money laundering.
This comes two years after Ruto and Gachagua were elected on a joint ticket.
The vote draws a line under months of infighting at the top level of government and includes Ruto’s hold on power.
The conflict escalated in June when Gachagua, in an act seen as undermining the president, accused the intelligence chief of not properly informing Ruto and the government of the large number of protests against an unwanted tax hike.
In a major blow to his authority, Ruto was recently forced to withdraw taxes. He dissolved his cabinet and brought in opposition members into his government.
Ruto has not yet commented on the impeachment of his deputy.
When the trial of this case started, one of Gachagua’s lawyers, Elisha Ongoya, said that all these allegations are “false, ridiculous or shameful”.
Before the vote, Gachagua said he would oppose the decision if it was successful.
A doctor was quoted by the Reuters news agency as saying that the 59-year-old man went to the hospital with a heart problem, but was stable and undergoing tests.
Kenyan media are already reporting about his replacement, which is mentioned by four people:
-
Murang’a County Governor Irungu Kang’ata
-
Kirinyaga County Governor Anne Waiguru
-
Minister of Interior Kithure Kindiki
-
Foreign minister Musalia Mudavadi.
Additional reporting by the BBC’s Jewel Kiriungi in Nairobi.
You may also be interested in:
Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfricaon Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
