Kenya: Lawyer Contests Move to Withdraw Gachagua Pre-Impeachment Petitions
Nairobi — A Nairobi-based lawyer has filed a legal application seeking to block the withdrawal of a series of pre-impeachment petitions challenging proceedings for the removal of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
Advocate Kelly Malenya told the court in an urgent application made on Monday the move would preserve public interest litigation and ensure judicial scrutiny of the constitutional process that led to Gachagua’s removal from office.
Acting on behalf of intended petitioner Fredrick Mulaa, Malenya is seeking urgent orders to prevent the withdrawal of Nairobi Petition E522 of 2024, seen a tactical move by Gachagua following a Court of Appeal ruling that declared the placement of the petitions before a bench constituded by Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu as irregular.
The petition, consolidated with five others–E506, E509, E525, E528, and E537 of 2024–is part of a group of cases categorized as Cohort 1, filed prior to Gachagua’s impeachment.
The original petitioner had filed a Notice of Withdrawal on May 15, 2025, which the new applicant contends could be a tactical move to frustrate the full hearing of the constitutional challenges.
Substitute petitioner
The application seeks, among other orders, to substitute the original petitioners with Fredrick Mulaa, who has expressed willingness to take over and prosecute the petitions to their conclusion.
“These petitions raise fundamental public interest issues concerning the legality and constitutionality of the impeachment process of a Deputy President,” reads the motion in part.
“They were filed at the initiation of the impeachment process and remain pending determination.”
The advocate asked the court to treat the matter as urgent and to hear it ex parte in the first instance, with subsequent proceedings given priority due to the significant constitutional questions involved.
Malenya argues that the petitions–whether filed before or after Gachagua’s impeachment–were driven by a desire to uphold public accountability and constitutional integrity.
The Court of Appeal’s on May 9 found Mwilu to have acted unprocedurally by executing a mandate assigned exclusively to the Chief Justice.
Gachagua’s lawyers welcomed the appeal court ruling demanding for the reinstatement of their client even though the court made no such orders.
The former DP’s team is expected to shift focus on the new application as it fights to protect his eligibility for the 2027 presidential election which he has signaled intent to contest.
By Capital FM.
