Gachagua moves to Court of Appeal to challenge impeachment ruling

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal seeking to challenge the High Court decision that upheld his impeachment.

In the appeal notice, Gachagua argues that sections of the ruling which acknowledged violations of his constitutional rights should have resulted in the invalidation of his removal from office.

Gachagua pointed out that he was in agreement with only five paragraphs of the 286-page ruling, which in part declared that his right to a fair trial was infringed when the Senate declined to adjourn the impeachment proceedings despite his absence.

The former deputy president also agreed with the ruling where the three-judge bench awarded him constitutional damages of Ksh.50 million to restore the dignity of the affected party and deter future violations.

Despite recognising violations of his rights, the High Court on June 4 maintained that those findings did not invalidate the final impeachment outcome, with the three-judge bench reasoning that the constitutional provisions governing succession prevented a reversal of the process after the transition had already taken place.

The Court of Appeal is now expected to review whether the High Court correctly interpreted provisions relating to impeachment, fair hearing rights and the legal consequences of procedural irregularities.