As the National Assembly prepares to debate the motion to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, the man of the day has hired about 20 lawyers to defend him against 11 charges in the motion seeking to ouster him.
The lawyers include some of those who represented former President Uhuru Kenyatta in his presidential election petitions and others involved in the 2022 presidential election petitions.
Gachagua is expected to appear before the House on Tuesday at 5 pm to answer to the 11 charges levelled against him.
The lawyers, led by Senior Counsel Paul Muite, will be fighting to save the DP’s position.
Others include Victor Swanya, George Wandati, Faith Waigwa, Elisha Ongoya, Ndengwa Njiru, George Sakimpa, Murigi Kamande, Willis Otieno, Amos Kisilu, Tom Macharia and Julia Omwamba.
Swanya, who is among the lawyers who filed a case to stop the impeachment motion, confirmed that the team comprises 20 legal minds.
Swanya said they are ready to find to the end.
“We have looked through the points, the accusations against the deputy president and we are prepared to deal with it,” he said.
Muite is a renowned lawyer, who has 51 years of experience in the corridors of justice.
He represented Uhuru in both the 2013 and 2017 presidential petitions.
He was also involved in the 2022 presidential elections where he represented the four Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission who rejected the results.
These are the results that saw President William Ruto and Gachagua take the reins.
This will not be the first time that Lawyer Ongoya is defending a politician against impeachment charges.
He represented Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza in two of her three impeachment motions at the Senate Assembly.
He was also among the lawyers who led the fight that saw the loss of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) that went up to the Supreme Court.
Lawyer Macharia has over 25 years of experience and in 2021, Chambers & Partners, a leading legal publication recognised him as one of the leading dispute resolution lawyers in Kenya.
The conclusion was made following interviews with clients and peers.