Senior Counsel Paul Muite has told the High Court that the impeachment of former deputy president was deliberately rushed and pre-arranged to evade constitutional scrutiny.
Appearing before a three-judge bench at the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi on Monday, Muite argued that the impeachment proceedings were engineered to conclude before they could be properly examined for legality.
“The entire impeachment was designed to avoid scrutiny and accountability, with the intention of running the process through before it could be audited for constitutional compliance,” Muite told the court.
He accused the National Assembly of conducting the process with unusual urgency and premeditation, citing what he described as a disregard for established parliamentary norms.
Muite highlighted the late-night transmission of the Assembly’s resolution to the Senate, arguing that it deviated from normal practice.
“The normal working hours are daylight hours. How is it that the National Assembly could not even wait for the next day? It was transmitted at night,” he said.
The senior counsel further questioned the conduct of the Speaker of the National Assembly, claiming advance planning suggested foreknowledge of the Senate’s decision.
“Any thinking person would wonder how the Speaker was able to anticipate the likely decision of the Senate in advance,” he argued, referring to a notice convening a Friday sitting before the Senate had concluded its deliberations.
He also told the court that the intense and fast-paced proceedings took a toll on Gachagua’s health.
“All of us are human beings. Illness does not come knocking. He fell ill after very stressful and strenuous proceedings,” he submitted.
The High Court is now examining whether the impeachment met constitutional standards.
Muite urged the bench to find that due process was compromised by haste, procedural irregularities, and alleged pre-determined outcome.
