Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua files a petition at the Court of Appeal seeking to stop the ongoing proceedings at the High Court.

Gachagua wants the Court of Appeal to stop the impeachment hearing at the High Court, citing dissatisfaction with a ruling by the three judges who failed to declare that Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu acted unlawfully in appointing them.

According to Gachagua’s lawyer John Njomo, the High Court ruling was inaccurate, and a misinterpretation of Article 165 (4) of the Constitution.

Njomo further argued that Articles 25, 27, 47, 48, 50 (1) and 260 of the Constitution only accords the Chief Justice the powers to empanel a bench and not any other judicial officer.

“The applicant contends that the stated ruling is based on not only a misinterpretation of Article 165 (4) of the Constitution but also a violation of Articles 25, 27, 47, 48, 50 (1) and 260 as the Constitution accords the power to empanel and assign judges to only the Chief Justice of Kenya…therefore the DCJ has no power to assign and empanel Judges,” read part of the Petition.

”That the actions and omissions of the impugned Bench are not only wrong and unlawful but incorrect, and unprocedural,” it added.

Gachagua through his lawyers argued that should the Court of Appeal fail to rule in his favour, then he would be denied the right to a fair hearing.

”That unless the said orders are issued, any delay shall result in irreparable prejudice of the Applicant’s rights to a Fair Trial & Hearing and ultimate loss of the substratum of his Petition E565 of 2024 which shall ultimately render both the intended Appeal herein and the Petition E565 of 2024 a nugatory, superfluous and moot,” the Petition added.

The petition comes a few days after the three judges, Justices Eric Ogola, Anthony Mrima, and Frida Mugambi, ruled that Mwilu acted lawfully by constituting the bench on behalf of Chief Justice Martha Koome.