Kenyan senators have voted to remove Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua from office despite his failure to testify at his impeachment trial after his lawyer said he had been taken to hospital.
In one of the most dramatic days in Kenya’s recent political history, Gachagua had been due to appear in the Senate after lunch to defend himself, a day after he had pleaded not guilty to 11 charges.
However, Gachagua, popularly known as Riggy G, did not show up and his lawyer requested a postponement saying his client was suffering from chest pains and was being treated by doctors at The Karen Hospital.
Senators chose to continue the trial without him, prompting the defence team to leave the chamber.
The senators’ refusal to delay proceedings until Saturday – as long as would have been legally allowed – shows their determination to oust Gachagua, several months after he fell out with President William Ruto.
Last week, an overwhelming 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 in the morning, has described the impeachment as a “political lynching”.
On Thursday evening, the required two-thirds of the 67 senators upheld five charges including inciting ethnic divisions and violating his oath of office.
This is enough for him to to be removed from office.
The unprecedented move means he cannot hold public office again and he also loses any retirement benefits.
He was cleared of six charges including corruption and money-laundering.
This comes just 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 consolidates Ruto’s hold on power.
