Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa Thursday announced he will sponsor an impeachment motion against Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
Already the motion has gained traction with more than 200 Members of Parliament signing it.
Barasa claimed to have surpassed the required 117 MPs needed for the motion to be approved by Speaker of the National Assembly, Moses Wetangula.
He said he had gathered 242 signatures from lawmakers across the political spectrum and plans to submit them to the Speaker.
Barasa expressed hope that the motion will be scheduled for debate on Tuesday following its approval by the Speaker.
“I am the sponsor of the impeachment motion against Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. So far, I have received 242 signatures, and an additional six MPs are awaiting their turn to sign,” he said.
According to Article 150 of the Constitution, a Deputy President can be impeached for gross violations of the Constitution, suspicion of committing a crime, or gross misconduct.
“I will present the impeachment motion on the floor of the House. By the end of today, I will submit the signatures to the Speaker’s office,” Barasa said.
“It will then be up to the Speaker to consider the motion next week and communicate its receipt, after which I will do my best to advocate for it on the House floor.”
On Thursday, lawmakers from the western caucus convened a Kamukunji to discuss the way forward, reaching a consensus on Gachagua’s ouster, suggesting a united front on this issue.
“That decision is sealed, and now we await the impeachment motion to be tabled before the House next week,” said one MP who requested to remain anonymous.
But some raised questions on what they would benefit from the ouster.
For instance Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera said he had asked his colleagues and he had t gotten any sensible answer.
“Now Kenyans help me. Why should I participate in impeaching Gachagua debate? What do I stand to gain by impeaching him? How will Lugari Constituency gain? Is Gachagua why the education sector is collapsing? Is he the architect of Adani heist?”
“Is he the reason we have poor health systems? Is he the reason the rural road network is in Shambles? Is he the reason treasury has no money?” he asked.
Gachagua has termed plans to impeach him political betrayal.
He said plans to charge in court his allies and aides with sponsoring chaos was part of the scheme to impeach him.
“I have learnt of a scheme to prefer trumped-up charges against three members of my staff and the MPs for Embakasi North Hon James Gakuya and Embakasi Central Hon Benjamin Gathiru Mejja Donk.”
“This evil scheme is to associate them with violent demonstrations that took place in late June, in a futile attempt to soil my name and hopefully create grounds for the mooted impeachment proceedings against me,” he added.
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