All eyes were on the National Assembly last Tuesday as MPs voted to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, accusing him of corruption, stirring ethnic division, and supporting anti-government protests.
It marked the first-ever impeachment proceeding against a sitting Deputy President in Kenya's history.
The unprecedented impeachment motion passed in the National Assembly, with 281 out of 349 members voting in favour, exceeding the required two-thirds majority (233).
The motion now moves to the Parliament's Upper House for final approval.
The Senate has since announced Wednesday and Thursday as the days which lawmaker will convene to hear charges for the proposed removal from office, by impeachment, of Gachagua.
If at least two-thirds of the senate vote to uphold the impeachment, Gachagua will be dismissed.
Gachagua has denied all 11 charges against him.
Ruto has not commented on the impeachment proceedings.
It will be a busy week for the Senate as the House will also consider the impeachment of Kericho governor Eric Mutai.
Speaker Amason Kingi has since set Monday and Tuesday as the dates that the House will conduct the trial of Mutai to determine whether allegations against him by the County Assembly are substantiated.
“The trial of the Governor will be conducted through the Plenary on Monday, October 14 and Tuesday, October 15, 2024,” Kingi ruled.
The County Assembly of Kericho impeached Governor Mutai on Wednesday October 2, accusing him of gross violation of the constitution and other laws, abuse of office and gross misconduct.
Gachagua’s trial will also be conducted by the plenary after a motion to establish an 11-member special was withdrawn for lack of a seconder.
The parties in the DP’s case have until Monday to file their responses with the Office of the Clerk of the Senate.
The office of the Clerk will have to circulate documents received from the parties, including the plenary hearing programme, to all the senators. Gachagua requires the support of at least 23 senators to save his job.
The DP will come face to face with some of the witnesses the motion mover has lined up. They include Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja, Secretary to the Cabinet Mercy Wanjau and ex-Kemsa CEO Andrew Mulwa.
The National Assembly alleges that there are serious reasons to believe that the Deputy President has committed crimes under the National Cohesion and Integration Act, gross economic crimes under the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act and the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act.
It also claims that the Deputy President has committed crimes by continuously misleading members of the public through false, malicious, divisive, and inciteful remarks that are contrary to the Penal Code and the Leadership and Integrity Act.
Gachagua is also accused of gross misconduct that is incompatible with the high calling and dignified status of the Office of the Deputy President and a member of the Cabinet and the National Security Council.
He is further accused of publicly attacking and undermining the work of the National Security Intelligence Service and its officers, openly insubordinating the President and persistently bullying state and public officers.