Hours after Kenya’s President William Ruto nominates his Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki as his new deputy on Friday, a court has blocked his appointment.
The court said not until it hears a case next week challenging the impeachment of Kindiki’s predecessor, Rigathi Gachagua.
The high court’s intervention came after lawmakers had already approved Kindiki’s appointment on Friday.
This development extends a period of political turmoil in the East African country that started with mass protests against unpopular tax hikes in June.
The Senate voted on Thursday to uphold impeachment charges against Ruto’s previous deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, which marked the first time that a Kenyan deputy president had been removed from office by impeachment.
In an order, the high court in the capital Nairobi said Kindiki’s appointment as deputy president and the Senate’s resolution upholding impeachment charges against Gachagua were suspended until Oct. 24, when a bench of judges appointed by the chief justice will debate the issue.
A second court order said Kindiki cannot assume office until the case is heard.
Gachagua was impeached on five out of 11 charges including gross violation of the constitution and stirring ethnic hatred – accusations that he denied and dismissed as politically motivated.
Kindiki was a top contender to be Ruto’s running mate during the 2022 election and was appointed interior minister shortly after the president took office in September that year.
Gachagua helped Ruto secure a large block of votes from the populous central Kenya region during the 2022 election. But in recent months, he has spoken of being sidelined, amid widespread reports in local media signalling a rift with Ruto as political alliances shifted.
Gachagua, who was hospitalised and absent during the Senate vote to dismiss him, filed a petition on Friday seeking to stop Ruto from naming his replacement pending a judicial hearing, a court filing showed.
