Martha Karua's father passes on
Mwalimu Jackson Karua.
The father of People's Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua is dead.
Mwalimu Jackson Karua passed on quietly on Sunday after a family gathering at Kimunye village in Kirinyaga County.
Ms Karua eulogised her father as a principled man who believed deeply in the value of character, education and doing what was right.
" He gave us not only his love but also the value by which he lived at and in doing so, he left us a legacy for greater than the word can capture," she said, praising him as a loving, steady, generous and present father.
Ms Karua recalled travelling home in Kirinyaga from Nairobi on Sunday to visit her father together with her siblings, where they spent time with him and even sang his favourite gospel hymn, never knowing it would be their last song to sing together.
"On my way back to Nairobi, I received news that my father had breathed his last," she said.
" I did not know I would soon be looking back in those moments with such tenderness, but I'm grateful to have them. There is never really be an age at which you are prepared to say goodbye to someone who has been part of your life from the beginning," she said.
Ms Karua recalled how much her father believed in her, long before she had achieved anything worth celebrating from her school days, through her career in law and then her chapters in public life.
" My father remained one of my strongest supporters, always proud, always encouraging and always in my corner," she added.
Democracy for Citizens (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua observed that Mwalimu Karua was pivotal in shaping the lives he touched as a teacher and in raising a great patriot in Martha Karua and her siblings, whose contribution to the post-independence Kenya remains strong in the years to come.
" My family and I join you at this difficult moment and deeply console with you and all your relatives, friends, and the people of Kenya on the loss of your daddy. Kindly receive my deepest sympathies at this difficult moment. I pray that the Lord God rests the soul of your daddy in eternal peace," said Mr Gachagua in his Facebook page.
Kirinyaga leaders, including Governor Anne Waiguru and her predecessor Joseph Nduati, also sent messages of condolences to the bereaved family, describing the late Karua as patriotic man.
“His life as a teacher, father and mentor leaves behind a lasting legacy of love, character and service,” Ms Waiguru said.
Others who sent their sympathies for the loss of Mwalimu Karua are Kirinyaga Jubilee Chairman Mureithi Kang'ara and Kirinyaga Central MP Gachoki Gitari.
