Petitioner Seeking DP Kindiki Removal Protests Mysterious Adjournment of Gachagua Impeachment Case

A petition seeking to challenge the removal of Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has drawn protest after the High Court failed to proceed with a scheduled hearing of a case tied to the impeachment of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.

The matter, which had been listed for hearing on Thursday, June 4, did not proceed as expected and was instead pushed to June 18, 2026, before a three-judge bench comprising Justices Fred Ogolla, Anthony Mrima, and Winfridah Mugambi.

Petitioner Enock Aura, through lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui, objected to the change of date, describing it as a sudden and unexplained shift communicated after the case had already been formally listed for hearing.

Kinyanjui said the adjournment was not communicated in an open manner to all parties involved in the matter.

“This impeachment never took off within the meaning of the Constitution, and that is what we intended to demonstrate,” Kinyanjui said.

“Now, mysteriously, the Judiciary communicates that the case has been shifted to the 18th of June for mention. For mention?”

He told the court that the hearing date had been fixed in the presence of all parties and formally reflected in the Judiciary’s public listings, before being moved without what he termed clear participation of litigants.

He questioned the decision to move the matter from a hearing date to a mention date, arguing that it altered the expected progression of the case.

“Why would the three-judge bench adjourn the hearing in secret? We are supposed to be guided by principles of transparency and openness, yet we have an opaque adjournment, without anyone having vacated the orders of May 7 to hear the case,” Kinyanjui said.

He further maintained that the impeachment process “never took off within the meaning of the law,” adding that the petition seeks to establish that position through judicial determination.

The petitioner has also raised arguments in court challenging the legality of the impeachment vote, including claims that some legislators allegedly withdrew their support before the final decision, and that certain constituencies were not properly represented during the proceedings.

The court is now expected to mention the matter on June 18, 2026, as parties await further directions on the hearing of the petition.