Ex-president Kibaki was in and out of hospital in last days

As he was in life, retired president Mwai Kibaki died peacefully and quietly in Nairobi yesterday morning. 

Before President Uhuru Kenyatta announced to the death of his predecessor, there had been nothing on the gossipy Nairobi streets regarding Kibaki.

And the Kibaki family wants it to remain that way. 

“The silence we kept during his ailment in his last days is the same attitude the family would like to appropriate,” a Kibaki household confidant told the Nation.

Interviews with sources close to the family and people in the security agencies gave an intimate glimpse into the final days of Kenya’s third president.  

Before breathing his last on Friday morning, the former president had been in and out of Nairobi Hospital for various ailments, including blood pressure. 

Some close family sources also said Kibaki was still battling the consequences of the road accident he was involved in 2002 ahead of the elections that thrust him into the leadership of the country. 

Kibaki was sworn in while on a wheelchair following the accident, which had seen him flown to the United Kingdom for treatment.

The hospital visits had become frequent. Kibaki was rushed back to hospital when his condition deteriorated on Thursday morning. 

Before being taken to the hospital, Kibaki’s private medical team had attended to him at his Muthaiga home and determined that he required around-the-clock monitoring because his condition was getting worse. 

It would be his last journey alive from his home to Nairobi Hospital. He died 24 hours after his admission. He was taken to the intensive care unit (ICU) at Nairobi Hospital. 

Read: World leaders pay tribute to ‘transformative’ Kibaki

Meanwhile, President Kenyatta was kept abreast of his predecessor’s condition. The third president of the republic breathed his last yesterday morning. He was 90. 

Kibaki’s death comes just two years and two months after his predecessor, Daniel Toroitich arap Moi, died.
Some of Kibaki’s children who were not at Nairobi Hospital at the time of the death were quickly informed.

The Saturday Nation was informed that Jimmy Kibaki, who was in a meeting in town at the time, quickly left without a word and headed to Nairobi Hospital.

President Kenyatta had already been told and together with Chief of Defence Forces Robert Kibochi, there were discussions on the planning for the state funeral, with the military expected to be in charge.  

According to several sources close to the family, even as the former president battled ailments, he was always alert.

Kibaki had a routine. He would wake up in the morning, have breakfast and then turn to the daily newspapers to keep himself informed of the happenings in the country and around the world. 

This was despite the fact that he also wanted to stay away from the limelight.

As President Kibaki’s health deteriorated, his children made a point of dropping by daily to check on him and also cheer up their father. 

Even in ill health, sources say the former president was alert, even when his memory would let him down on some occasions. 

A nephew of the former president yesterday told the Saturday Nation that Kibaki was a generous man who valued education.

Read: The night swearing in that blotted Kibaki’s rich legacy

The former president went out of his way to make sure every child in his family received education to the highest level, Mr John Kibaki Kinyua eulogised his uncle.

Othaya hometown

“This is a very big loss to Kenya and especially the family. There is not much we can say except to accept the inevitable. We are hurting but we accept whatever has happened,” he said. 

Mr Kibaki added that he is one of the beneficiaries of the former president’s generosity and love for formal education.

“He was a very generous man. He made sure that every child received the best education to the highest level possible. I am where I am because of my uncle,” he said.

A brief statement from Mr Kibaki’s staff last evening only relayed condolences.

“We, the members of staff at the Office of His Excellency Mwai Kibaki, CGH are gravely saddened by his demise. We have lost our leader and mentor,” the statement said.

Kibaki will be remembered for pushing children to get educated in his hometown of Othaya and across the country.

“He wanted us to emulate him. My uncle guided and fought for us to get an education. He did so not just for his relatives but every Kenyan. He surely loved schooling,” Mr Kibaki said. 

Apart from promoting education, Kibaki will be remembered by his family and relatives as a mentor, a source within the family told the Saturday Nation. 

The source added that Kibaki had carried the legacy of spreading love everywhere. 

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