Kithure Kindiki Slams Gachagua for Linking Ruto to Push Oust CJ Koome: "Ethnic Godfather"
TUKO.co.ke journalist Ivan Mboto has over three years of experience reporting on politics and current affairs in Kenya.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has issued a stern rebuke to his predecessor, Rigathi Gachagua, accusing him of being a “godfather of ethnicity and tribalism”.
Source: UGC
This comes amid escalating tensions over the alleged looming removal of Chief Justice Martha Koome from office.
In a statement posted on his official X account on Monday, February 24, Kindiki stressed the importance of maintaining the integrity of judicial processes, arguing that such matters should remain free from political or ethnic manipulation.
“Removal of a judge from office is purely a constitutional matter and not a political or ethnic issue,” he wrote.
He urged both critics and supporters of judges to rely on legal arguments, warning against the dangers of reducing serious judicial debates to tribal rhetoric.
“Accusers and defenders of judges must use constitutional and legal arguments to state their positions rather than trivializing such a weighty legal matter by bringing in ethnicity into the equation,” Kindiki added.
In what appeared as a direct critique of Gachagua’s regional mobilisation tactics, Kindiki questioned the fate of other judges who do not have "ethnic godfathers".
“Who defend the judges who may be innocent but do not have ethnic godfathers?” Kindiki asked.
The controversy stems from Gachagua’s claims on Sunday, February 23, during a church service in Nyeri county.
Gachagua alleged that President William Ruto is orchestrating a covert effort to remove Koome from office, framing it as part of a power consolidation strategy ahead of the 2027 General Election.
The former DP further claimed the move targets the Mount Kenya region, where both he and Koome originate. He called on his audience to resist what he described as an assault on their community’s representation in government.
Following his impeachment as deputy president in October 2024, Gachagua has positioned himself as a vocal critic of the Ruto administration he once served under.
Source: Facebook
On Friday, February 21, the High Court in Nairobi temporarily halted the Judicial Service Commission from reviewing petitions aimed at removing Koome and her colleagues on the Supreme Court.
The decision followed a petition filed by Njoki Ndung’u, requesting the court to suspend the petitions that seek the removal of the seven Supreme Court judges.
The petitions in question are Dari Limited & 5 Others vs. Chief Justice Martha Koome & 6 Others, and another filed by former Law Society of Kenya President Nelson Havi.
Havi's petition, filed on January 13, seeks the removal of Koome, her deputy Philomena Mwilu, and Justices Mohamed Ibrahim, Smokin Wanjala, Njoki Ndung’u, Isaac Lenaola, and William Ouko.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
