Former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua now believes the reported plots by his former employer, President William Ruto, to remove Chief Justice Martha Koome from office reach a long distance into the past.
Gachagua has been claiming Ruto aims to overthrow the Supreme Court president for her apparent failure to succumb to political pressure.
He even cautioned the President on Sunday that if the proposal comes to pass, he “should not set foot” in Koome’s native Meru.
Additionally, Gachagua, who was impeached by the Senate in October, stated in a Monday night interview with KTN that Ruto had started talking about his plans to remove Koome from office long ago, when the former DP was still in power.
Martha Koome’s refusal to compromise led to President William Ruto’s long-standing plan to remove her as Chief Justice. In reference to the vote-rich Mount Kenya region, which includes Koome’s Meru and his home county of Nyeri, Gachagua told the broadcaster, “He shared this with me and many times he even quarrelled me [sic] that a daughter from the mountain is being problematic.”
He continued by saying that he had “many discussions” with CJ Koome about the issue and that “he accused me of being unable to manage Martha Koome to do things the way the President wants.”
“She is strict to the rule of law and constitutionalism and a very respectable judge… I was against it. Gachagua stated, “The issue was put on hold until I was chased out of office and has now been put on top gear.”
“A president must be able to manage an election cycle from the IEBC (Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission) to the Supreme Court,” the former DP added, claiming that President Ruto wants “the entire Supreme Court bench” removed.
According to Gachagua, “he frequently expressed his wish to have the entire bench replaced so he can install a bench that does what he wants.”
Since being ousted, the former DP has criticized Ruto and his government for a number of reasons, including cronyism, intolerance, tyranny, and a failure to listen to Kenyans.
Additionally, he has pledged to “make whatever sacrifices necessary” in order to reduce the likelihood that Ruto would be re-elected in the general election of 2027.
On Sunday, Gachagua told a church congregation in Meru he would lead nationwide protests if CJ Koome is dismissed, adding he would not stand by and watch Ruto “destroy the leadership of Mount Kenya.”
Gachagua said Ruto “has numbers” in the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and voiced concerns that the alleged attempt would pass easily in the KTN interview on Monday.
Like my impeachment, he declared, “any proceedings against the Chief Justice and the judges will just be a kangaroo court: it will be predetermined.”
“He has already taken control of the National Assembly, Senate, and opposition, and he will have taken control of the entire nation.”
Gachagua’s claims follow a month after Nelson Havi, the former president of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), petitioned JSC to remove CJ Koome and the whole Supreme Court bench.
Havi mentions alleged ineptitude and malfeasance in the lawsuit.
Nevertheless, the Inspector General claimed that CJ Koome’s security detail was controversially removed without warning in January for “training and promotion,” but it was later reinstalled following a backlash.
