Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has withdrawn one of the two petitions he filed at the High Court challenging his impeachment and removal from office in October 2024.
Gachagua's lawyer, Victor Swanya, confirmed the withdrawal of Petition E522 of 2024, explaining that the decision was made on the instructions of his client.
The legal team said it had opted to discontinue the case because most of the issues raised in it had already been addressed in a separate but related petition, E565 of 2024.
Speaking before the court, Swanya explained that continuing with both cases would unnecessarily consume judicial time, particularly because the legal team was already pursuing an appeal against the High Court's decision in the second petition.
"What we don't want is to spend a lot of judicial time arguing a petition whose issues have sort of been determined by E565 of 2024," Swanya said.
He added that the team preferred to concentrate its efforts on the appeal rather than pursue another case raising substantially similar questions.
Why Gachagua withdrew his impeachment case
The two petitions were filed at different stages of Gachagua's impeachment process.
Petition E522 was filed before the Senate concluded the proceedings against him. It challenged the legality and constitutionality of the impeachment process initiated by the National Assembly.
However, Petition E565 was filed after the Senate voted on October 17, 2024, to uphold the impeachment charges and remove Gachagua from office. The case directly challenged the Senate's decision.
The High Court had previously clarified that its judgment in E565 would also apply to E522, a position that informed the decision to withdraw the earlier petition.
Swanya confirmed that Gachagua's legal team would now focus on challenging the High Court's findings at the Court of Appeal.
The appellate matter has been scheduled for directions on July 19.
The withdrawal effectively narrows Gachagua's legal battle against his impeachment, leaving the pending appeal as the main avenue through which he intends to challenge his removal from office.
Source
https://www.tuko.co.ke/politics/645647-rigathi-gachagua-withdraws-impeachment-petition-e522-2024/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAcGRvZgNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8yNzUyNTQ2OTI1OTgyNzkAAR9P2ze3yjN2GkZd35KNfojjRthZGiTFXWO36XOnwhmW8uGLPf-owEco6Lqfqg_aem_u6miptxhYwV3oG6s9JmPHA
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