Kisumu Governor Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o has paid tribute to former Cabinet Minister Dalmas Otieno, describing him as a “thorough and conscientious leader.”
Prof Nyong’o recalled his long friendship with Otieno that began during their days at Makerere University, Kampala, where both served in the Students’ Guild leadership.
Prof Nyong’o, who served as Guild President, remembered the late former Rongo MP and Kanu stalwart as “passionate for fresh and verifiable ideas” and a meticulous debater who served as his Minister for Finance in the Guild Cabinet.
Archive photo: 1970 at Makerere University. Kisumu Governor Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o (in checked jacket), Late Dalas Otieno standing behind Nyong’o, with the rest of the Students' Guild Cabinet of 1969/70.
Photo credit: Pool
Otieno, who later became Member of Parliament for Rongo Constituency after the reintroduction of multiparty politics in 1992, went on to serve in various ministerial portfolios.
He was widely respected as a pragmatic politician with a reputation for diligence and measured counsel.
“Dalmas did not disappoint,” Prof Nyong’o noted, adding that the late leader’s contributions to national discourse and development would remain etched in memory.
Quoting Shakespeare, Prof Nyong’o implored that “the good that Dalmas did lives after him while the bad is buried with his bones.”
The Governor further urged Kenyans to celebrate Otieno’s positive impact on the nation, while praying for his family to find comfort in God.
The late Otieno, popularly known in political circles as “the gentleman of Kenyan politics,” distinguished himself for his calm demeanor and ability to bridge divides across the country’s often polarized political landscape.
He passed on on Sunday, aged 80.
His death has drawn tributes from across the political spectrum, with leaders hailing him as a statesman who remained committed to Kenya’s democratic journey.
“Go well, Hon. Dalmas Otieno. Go well, wuod Anyango kwok omako lum joma ofuwo luongo ni tho!” Prof Nyong’o said in his moving message, as he recalled the late Otieno’s famous Luo expression.
Dalmas Otieno during a media briefing on November 20, 2019.
Photo credit: File| Nation Media Group
Otieno’s political manoeuvres sometimes led to clashes with senior figures, including the late President Daniel Moi and veteran politician Raila Odinga.
Yet, his adaptability also enabled him to serve in successive administrations, including those of Presidents Moi, Mwai Kibaki, and Uhuru Kenyatta.
For him, politics had no permanent enemies, only opportunities to advance governance and community development. Born on April 19, 1945, in West Kamagambo Location, South Nyanza District, Otieno received his early education at Kitweru Primary School, Asumbi Intermediate School, and Rapogi Secondary School.
He earned a Bachelor of Science in Applied Economics from Makerere University, Uganda, in 1968 and later completed a Master of Business Administration at the University of Nairobi in 1980.
Between 1971 and 1982, he worked as an accounts manager for Insurance Agency Management. He later chaired the Kenya Commercial Bank Board from 1982 for three years and became the first Kenyan Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute in 1979.
Otieno entered politics in 1988, winning the Rongo Parliamentary seat despite being a political newcomer, a victory attributed in part to support from Hezekiah Oyugi, Moi’s Permanent Secretary for Internal Security.
