NAIROBI, Kenya — Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has rejected the High Court’s decision upholding his impeachment and announced plans to challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal, insisting that justice can only be achieved by overturning what he describes as an unlawful removal from office.
Speaking during a press briefing on Tuesday, Gachagua said the three-judge bench failed to fully uphold constitutional principles despite finding that his right to a fair hearing had been violated during the Senate impeachment proceedings.
“A long-standing legal principle of natural justice and the right to a fair hearing has been disregarded and ignored in broad daylight,” Gachagua said.
“We will proceed to file an appeal at the Court of Appeal challenging the decision, in the hope that justice will ultimately prevail.”
The former Deputy President said he had consulted his legal team led by Senior Counsel Paul Muite and instructed them to immediately challenge the judgment.
According to Gachagua, the central objective of his petition was not financial compensation but the nullification of what he considers an unconstitutional impeachment process.
“My prayer was to seek the quashing of an illegal process of impeachment. It is only after the determination of illegality and setting aside of the impeachment that we were to consider asking for damages for constitutional violations,” he said.
He dismissed the court’s award of Sh50 million in constitutional damages as inadequate.
“The Sh50 million awarded to me is an insult to my fundamental rights and freedoms and a mockery of the Constitution. We are not interested. Money was never the issue here. Justice and constitutional supremacy,” Gachagua added.
The ruling, delivered on June 8 by Justices Eric Ogola, Anthony Mrima, and Frida Mugambi, declined to nullify the Senate resolution that removed Gachagua from office in October 2024.
However, the court found that the former Deputy President’s right to a fair trial had been violated when the Senate declined to adjourn proceedings despite his absence due to illness.
The judges awarded Sh50 million in damages payable by the Senate and directed Parliament to enact a comprehensive legal framework governing impeachment proceedings under Article 150 of the Constitution.
The court observed that the absence of a dedicated statute regulating the impeachment of a Deputy President creates uncertainty and increases the risk of procedural inconsistencies in future cases.
Despite finding violations of fair trial rights, the judges stopped short of overturning the Senate’s decision, effectively leaving the impeachment intact and affirming the legality of Deputy President Kithure Kindiki’s succession to office.
Gachagua was impeached after the National Assembly approved charges ranging from alleged corruption and unexplained wealth to gross misconduct, ethnic incitement, and violations of constitutional leadership standards. The Senate subsequently upheld several charges and voted to remove him from office on October 17, 2024, making him the first Deputy President in Kenya’s history to be impeached.
Following his removal, Gachagua challenged the process in court, arguing that the proceedings were politically motivated, violated constitutional safeguards, and denied him a fair opportunity to defend himself.
