Kenya’s Ruto chooses interior minister as new deputy

A day after the Senate voted to impeach Ruto's previous deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, Kenyan President William Ruto chose Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki as his replacement.

Speaker Moses Wetang'ula declared in parliament on Friday, "I have received a message from... the president, regarding the nomination of Prof. Kithure Kindiki to fill the vacancy which has occurred in the office."

Recall that on Thursday, the Kenyan Senate decided to remove Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua from office by impeachment on five of the eleven counts brought against him. This was a historic vote that might potentially lead to a political crisis in Kenya.

Gachagua, who assisted President William Ruto in winning an election two years ago, is under fire from the president's followers for suspected disloyalty and a slew of controversial remarks he made in public. Last week, the National Assembly decided to remove Gachagua from office.

More than the two-thirds majority needed by law, 54 senators cast votes in favour of dismissing Gachagua on the first charge of "gross violation of the constitution."

He is thus the first president or deputy president of Kenya to be removed from office by impeachment.

Senate Speaker Amason Kingi declared, "Therefore, His Excellency Rigathi Gachagua...resigns from office."

The chief justice has assigned a panel of three justices to review the petitions that Gachagua has filed opposing the effort to remove him, so the process is unlikely to end there.

Prior to the vote on Thursday afternoon, Gachagua, who has refuted the accusations, was scheduled to present his case before the Senate against the charges.

When he did not appear, his attorney Paul Muite said that the deputy president had been hospitalised for severe chest problems and urged the Senate to put off the meeting for a few days.
Gachagua's legal team, however, left the chambers in protest when the senate refused to do so.

Gachagua's physician, Dan Gikonyo, informed reporters that the deputy president had been admitted to a hospital in Nairobi with heart trouble on Thursday afternoon, but was now stable and would likely have to remain in hospital for 24-72 hours.
A few senators expressed doubts about the choice to hold the vote without Gachagua.

Senator John Methu declared, "We are going to try a man in the hospital because Rigathi Gachagua has only committed political crimes. He has to be removed out of the way, whatever it takes."

However, Senator Moses Otieno Kajwang argued that "we must drain the swamp" in support of the impeachment of Gachagua.

Throughout Ruto's two years as president, Kindiki, the new deputy president and a close supporter, has served in the position of interior minister.

Prior to the 2022 election, he was a leading candidate to be Ruto's running mate for Tharaka Nithi County.

Kindiki's appointment will be subject to a vote in Parliament before he takes office.