The recently impeached vice president of Kenya, Geoffrey Rigathi Gachagua, has said he was removed from office for defending Kenyan against government corruption and oppression.
The former deputy president has outlined key reasons behind his recent impeachment.
Senators deposed Gachagua from office after voting to approve five of the charges levelled against him, including gross misconduct.
However, Gachagua while addressing an audience on Sunday, November 10, 2024, in Kawaha West asserted that he was impeached for defending Kenyans against Kenya Kwanza government’s oppression, manipulation and corruption.
“They impeached me because I stood against the oppression of Kenyans. If that was my mistake, I accept it. We had promised Kenyans that no one would face forced eviction without fair compensation. Today, I am glad the courts recently ruled that evicted Kenyans must be compensated, showing they agree with me,” Gachagua said.
The impeached deputy president stated one of the accusations pressed against him during his politically charged impeached motion was that he resisted the government’s demolition of people’s houses.
Meanwhile, Gachagua praised a recent court’s ruling by Justice Ann Mogeni in which the justice ordered that the Kenyan government compensate the residents of Mathare, Gwa Kairu, Mukuru Kwa Ruben and Kiamaiko slums who have been displaced by evictions for the losses they incurred.
“I saw the courts ruled those people whose houses were demolished to be paid, which means I was vindicated and won,” he stated
Prior to be elected vice president of Kenya, Gachagua was loyal protégé and ally of Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta. He had also previously served in various roles in government, including as an Assistant secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs and National Heritage, as a personal assistant to the Head of the Public Service, as a personal assistant to the then Minister for Local Government Uhuru Kenyatta and as a district officer.
In the 2022 presidential election, incumbent president William Ruto chose Gachagua as his running mate, and the two were elected with just over 50% of the popular vote.
On 8 October 2024, Ruto and Gachagua fell out and the former deputy president was impeached by the Kenyan National Assembly on 11 separate charges. He filed fruitless legal challenges against the impeachment, but was rejected by the High Court.
On October 17, 2024, the Senate upheld five of the 11 charges, thereby confirming the impeachment and removed him from office.
Upon his removal from office, President Ruto immediately appointed Kithure Kindiki, one of his strongest allies, as the new deputy president.
