Former Karachuonyo Member of Parliament Dr. Phoebe Muga Asiyo died in a hospital in North Carolina, United States of America.
She was 93.
According to her son Caesar Asiyo, the veteran politician died of a stroke while in the USA visiting her family.
Caesar said Dr. Asiyo developed a stroke and it became difficult for medics to manage her condition at her age.
He described the death of his mother as a serious setback to the family and called on Kenyans to join them in mourning her demise.
Dr. Asiyo was first elected the MP for Karachuonyo in 1980 and served until 1983, when Parliament was dissolved.
She was re-elected to Parliament in 1992 after the inception of the multi-party system on a Ford Kenya ticket until 1997 when the late Paul Adhu Awiti took over.
Prior to serving as the MP for Karachuonyo, Dr. Asiyo joined Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organization in 1953, before being elected Chairperson in 1958.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga has mourned her passing, describing her as a “true trail blazer, a woman of many firsts – earned and deserved.”
“We celebrate Phoebe, the teacher who transformed the lives of many boys and girls who proceeded to make an impact on Kenya as leaders of the Republic. We celebrate her as a daring woman who proceeded from teaching to being a leading officer in the Kenya Prison Service system,” said Mr. Odinga in a post on social media.
“We acknowledge and celebrate her daring attitude that saw her enter into the then male dominated electoral politics and not only won but floored and giant. Phoebe cleared the path for many women and continued to show the way while she lived.”
Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, on her part, eulogized Dr. Asiyo as a woman who paved ways for women leaders to ascend to leadership.
Wanga said Asiyo became an MP when it was difficult for a woman to acquire such a post and described her as a woman who mentored women for political leadership.
“Many of us women leaders stand on the shoulders of Mama Phoepe Asiyo, we walk a path that she opened when it was difficult for women to walk that path. It is a huge loss and we stand with the family during this very trying time,” said the ODM National Chairman.
Former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka said at the age of 31, Asiyo became the first African woman to be named Senior Superintendent of Women’s Prison on the brink of independence in 1963.
Four years after joining the movement in 1953, she was elected as the first Black African president of the Maendeleo Ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO) in 1958.
“Asiyo who was first elected as Member of Parliament for Karachuonyo in 1983, left a lasting legacy as a prominent advocate for African women’s economic and political liberation. From the Affirmative Action Fund to the gender principle dream, which was ultimately fulfilled with the inclusion of the two-thirds gender rule in Kenya’s Constitution in 2010, Hon. Asiyo made it possible not only for women but for all of us.”
President William Ruto said he was saddened by the death of Asiyo, one of Kenya’s most distinguished female leaders and a trailblazing Member of Parliament for Karachuonyo.
“Dr Asiyo will be remembered as a fearless legislator and a relentless advocate for gender equity. Her voice was instrumental in advancing the inclusion of women in politics and leadership, leaving behind a legacy that continues to inspire generations.“
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