In a dramatic escalation of internal party politics, United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Secretary General Hassan Omar has laid out the party’s intentions to expel Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua following his potential impeachment.
Speaking at a party event in Mombasa on Saturday, September 28, 2024, Omar confirmed that a significant number of UDA Members of Parliament (MPs) have already expressed their support for the motion to impeach Gachagua.
He noted that the party is likely to follow the majority’s lead.
“I am reliably informed by most of our members of parliament that many of them from the UDA party have appended their signatures and are in support of that motion of impeachment,” Omar said.
Adding that; “I think we will go with the majority of members of the UDA party. If the majority members of the UDA party are in support of the impeachment then the UDA party itself will also support what the members feel is in the best interest of the party and the country.
The UDA Secretary-General stressed that should the impeachment sail in Parliament, Gachagua would face immediate expulsion from the party.
Sowing divisions
Omar accused Gachagua of undermining national unity including the constitution, and pushing a divisive agenda that threatens the country’s stability.
“And in fact should that motion of impeachment sail through, our immediate concern then will be to eject him also as a member of the party because then you cannot be found to be grossly incompetent, grossly undermining the constitution and national unity and then still become a ranking member of this party,” he remarked.
He emphasized that Gachagua has been a destabilizing force within the government, working against the core principles that the UDA and the ‘Hustler Nation’ were built on.
Omar further criticized Gachagua’s rhetoric, which he said undermines the unity that President William Ruto has been striving to achieve since taking office.
“You cannot preach the gospel of ethnicity, malice, division, gospel of exclusion, gospel that tries to incite one group of people against another. He has been the most catastrophic, the most insidious in term of dealing a very decisive role in term of unity of this country that had been carefully knit by hustler nation,” he said.
Omar emphasized that Gachagua’s continued presence in the party would be untenable, labelling him as a threat to the unity and cohesion of the nation.
“I don’t think it’s proper and right to have a deputy president who is actually himself actual threat to national unity,” Omar concluded.
This revelation marks a significant escalation in Gachagua’s political crisis.
The Deputy President has been under fire from various factions within the ruling coalition, with accusations of tribalism and undermining government policies fueling the push for his ouster.
In a blistering speech delivered on Saturday, Francis Atwoli, the Secretary-General of the Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU), intensified the political storm surrounding Gachagua, calling for his arrest.
Atwoli accused Gachagua of sowing seeds of tribalism and acting contrary to government policies, remarks that came as impeachment talks swirled around the Deputy President in Parliament.
Atwoli was unreserved in his criticism, urging for swift legal action against Gachagua.
He accused the Deputy President of undermining government efforts and fostering ethnic divisions.
Now, with his own party considering expulsion, Gachagua’s political future hangs in the balance.
As Parliament prepares to deliberate on the impeachment motion, all eyes will be on UDA’s next moves and how Gachagua responds to this unprecedented double threat.
