Gachagua's impeachment and Kenya's declining democracy

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during National Assembly impeachment hearing. [File, Standard]

Rigathi Gachagua is out of the way and we have a new Deputy President, Prof Kithure Kindiki. However, when all is said and done, the special motion which saw Mr Gachagua's successful impeachment and removal from office, sponsored by Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse should not be archived as record document. The motion does not qualify as a reference for impeaching the President or his deputy. Neither should the processes of both legislative houses be preserved as citable cases on the procedures of impeaching the President. Why do I say so?

In their book, 'How democracies die', Levitsky and Ziblatt argue that the relationship between law and politics determines whether a democracy will stand or fall. Since law is a product of political processes, it is often conceived that the rule of law is vulnerable under political care.