Nairobi, Kenya— Members of the national assembly have voted to impeach the deputy president, Rigathi Gachugua, on all 11 grounds laid against him. He will be the first Deputy president to have been impeached under the 2010 constitution.
A staggering 280 members of parliament voted in favor of the motion, while 44 voted against. Only one member abstained.
The deputy president who appeared before the House in is two hours of defense refuted close to all the eleven grounds.
The speaker of the National Assembly, Moses Wetangula, is mandated to communicate to the Senate speaker, Amason Kingi, within two days for consideration.
The Senate Speaker is expected to convene a House to deliberate on the matter within the next seven days; thereafter, the deputy president shall cease holding the office should 45 out of 67 senators vote in favor of his impeachment.
If the Senate keeps the resolution from the Lower House, the DP might proceed to petition the court.
Gachagua has been accused of gross misconduct of the office, among other several charges presented by the Kibwezi West lawmaker, Hon. Mwengi Mutuse.
Among the eleven grounds endorsed by the lawmakers include undermining the president, bullying of state officers, and violation of Article 10 of the constitution on national values and principles of governance—linked to his public utterances.
The DP has also been accused of unlawfully amassing wealth to the tune of Ksh 5.2 billion, which he refuted while appearing before the national assembly to defend his fate.
He has, however, vowed to fight till the last mile amid the divisions that have so far rented the political atmosphere in the country over his removal from the office.
