Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has paid tribute to the late freedom fighter Mukami Kimathi, wife of the late Field Marshal Dedan Kimathi.
The second in command highlighted her inspirational nature and her symbolic representation of resilience and struggle.
Speaking at the Lee Funeral Home on 5 May 2023 following her death, the DP also assured the family of the government’s support during the funeral and beyond.
Gachagua said the government would appoint a senior official to oversee the burial arrangements.
“The senior official will work with the family to give Mukami a befitting send-off,” he noted.
“This is a great loss. She was a symbol of our resilience and struggle,” said DP Gachagua.
Mukami died at 11 pm on Thursday, 4 May 2023, while receiving treatment at Nairobi Hospital.
She was brought to the hospital during the night with breathing difficulties.
Other politicians present at the Lee Funeral Home included Cabinet Secretary for Investment, Trade, and Industry Moses Kuria.
In his eulogy, Kuria expressed sadness at Mukami Kimathi’s passing, noting that she never wavered from her ideals.
He called on all Kenyans to honour her legacy by working towards a better future for the next generation.
“Mukami Kimathi never wavered from her ideals. For us, it is actually a call to patriotism. A call to look at the future generations and see if the people get the just dividend of their struggle,” said Kuria.
Under the government’s leadership, Kuria said, there were plans to stand by the family and institutionalise Mukami Kimathi’s legacy.
“Her legacy must be institutionalised,” he said.
The family attributed her death to old age. The body is at the Lee Funeral Home.
She died at the age of 96.
Her daughter, Everlyne Kimathi, earlier said it was Mukami’s wish that her husband’s body be exhumed from Kamiti Prison and reburied elsewhere by the state.
She will be buried at her home in Njambini.
Mukami was one of the Mau Mau freedom fighters detained at Kamiti Maximum Prison during the struggle for independence.
