Nairobi (TDI): Kenya’s Senate is set to vote Thursday on the potential impeachment of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, marking an unprecedented political moment for the nation.
This vote follows a historic decision by the National Assembly last week, where Gachagua was impeached on 11 charges, including corruption, insubordination, undermining the government, and promoting ethnically divisive politics.
The Senate trial began Wednesday after Gachagua, 59, also known as “Riggy G,” faced multiple failed attempts in court to stop the impeachment process.
He arrived at parliament Thursday, expected to testify in his defense.
Gachagua denies all allegations, with no criminal charges currently filed against him, but if the Senate votes to impeach, he will automatically lose his position.
Should this occur, he would be the first deputy president to be removed in this manner since the impeachment process was introduced in Kenya’s revised 2010 constitution.
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Gachagua has claimed he is being treated like a “spent cartridge,” but he could challenge the impeachment in court after the parliamentary proceedings conclude.
Among the names suggested as potential successors are Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki, Foreign Minister and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, and Governor Anne Waiguru.
Gachagua faces a tough battle if opposition members in the 67-seat Senate align with the ruling party, as seen in the National Assembly vote on October 9, where an overwhelming 282 MPs supported the impeachment, far exceeding the two-thirds majority needed.
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A powerful businessman from the Kikuyu tribe, Gachagua previously overcame corruption scandals to become deputy leader alongside President William Ruto in the tightly contested 2022 election.
However, he has recently voiced concerns about being sidelined by Ruto, while also being accused of backing youth-led anti-government protests that erupted in June over unpopular tax increases, revealing deepening divisions within the ruling elite.
