MPs halt House proceedings, demand arrest of Gachagua over 2007 remarks

Members of the National Assembly on Tuesday halted House proceedings as lawmakers demanded the arrest of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua over controversial 2007 utterances.

The angry lawmakers also called for a declaration of the ex-Mathira MP as unfit to hold any public office in the future.

The uproar stems from recent utterances made by Gachagua during an interview insinuating the 2007 elections will be like Christmas party if the IEBC rigs the coming general election.

South Mugirango MP Silvanus Osoro, terming the remarks inciteful and dangerous, demanded the arrest of Gachagua.

“Gachagua should by now be behind bars for the statements; he should be charged for incitement. He should not be allowed to run up and down the country,” Osoro demanded.

The leaders were responding adjournment motion by Minority Leader Junet Mohamed, who had sought time to discuss Gachagua’s remarks.

“Article 37 of the Constitution guarantees every Kenyan the right to assemble, demonstrate, and picket peacefully and unarmed. But that right ends where violence ends,” Junet said.

“No leader, including the former DP, has the right to manipulate public sentiments to incite unrest, destruction of property, or the loss of innocent lives.”

National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, while condemning the remarks as evil, said they should not have come from a leader.

“I dare add today, this is not just a man with a dark heart but a very dark soul, and a dark soul to the extent that this man believes that the death of Kenyans, the bloodshed that this country witnessed in 2007, as unfortunate as it was, that he can equate the death and bloodshed that was occasioned on innocent Kenyans as a ‘Christmas Party,’” the Kikuyu MP submitted.

This tells you that this is indeed a man with a very dark soul.”

Rarieda MP Otiende Amolo urged the house to consider to push for a court process to look into the details of the impeachment with a view of declaring Gachagua unfit to hold any public office.

“I want to urge this house through its lawyers to insist to the court to go to the merit of that matter to declare whether Parliament was wrong or not including fitness to hold office. I think it is that time that we need to reexamine that matter,” Otiende said.

“We feel vindicated that the action we took to impeach the mistake of a deputy president that we had, we feel completely vindicated. Even if we were to rewind time, we would still do the same,” added Uriri MP Mark Nyamita.

Funyula MP Wilberforce Oundo, however, sided with Rigathi Gachagua, saying the ex-DP was just a mere ‘messenger’ on the need to prepare adequately for a free and fair elections.

“Let us not kill the messenger; let us get the message. Let us prepare for the next elections,” Oundo said.

The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) has also raised concerns about the utterances that border on incitement.

The commission last week issued a summons to the former DP, a summons that Gachagua has dismissed.