Blow to Gachagua as Court declines to stop Senate impeachment trial

Justice Chacha Mwita During the ruling of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua impeachment case at the Milimani Courts. [David Gichuru, Standard]

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has yet again faced another setback after the High Court declined to stop the Senate impeachment trial scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.

In his ruling, Justice Chacha Mwita stated that the Senate cannot be restrained by the court, though he acknowledged the High Court's jurisdiction to hear Gachagua's case.

The judge certified the matter as urgent and referred it to Chief Justice Martha Koome to form a bench to hear and decide the petition.

"Having considered the application and arguments by both parties, the request for conservatory orders is declined. However, given the issues raised in this petition, I certify this matter as urgent and request the Chief Justice to form a bench to hear and determine the petition," Mwita ruled.

Gachagua had sought the court's intervention to prevent the Senate from debating the impeachment motion passed by the National Assembly last week.

Represented by a legal team led by Senior Counsel Paul Muite, the DP argued that the impeachment process was politically motivated and expressed confidence that the Judiciary would provide a fair ruling.

With the court's decision, the Senate is now set to proceed with debating on and voting on the impeachment on Wednesday and Thursday.

Additional reporting by Nancy Gitonga.