Ruto, Raila share stage in farewell to Phoebe Asiyo (Photos)
Nyanza
By
Ronald Kipruto
| Aug 08, 2025
President William Ruto and Raila Odinga. [Michael Mute, Standard]
President William Ruto and Raila Odinga are among national leaders attending the burial of former Karachuonyo MP Phoebe Asiyo, who is being laid to rest at her Wikondiek home in Homa Bay County.
Ruto is accompanied by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, Governors Gladys Wanga (Homa Bay), Ochilo Ayacko (Migori) and several Members of Parliament.
Also in attendance is Siaya Senator Oburu Oginga.
Asiyo died in a hospital last month, while visiting the United States, aged 93. She had suffered a stroke.
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First elected to Parliament in 1980, she served until 1983, when Parliament was dissolved. She returned in 1992 under the Ford-Kenya ticket during the reintroduction of multiparty politics.
Known for her advocacy for women’s rights, she joined Maendeleo ya Wanawake in 1953 and became its chair in 1958, championing women’s rights for decades.
Karua, who worked alongside Asiyo in Parliament, the League of Women Voters, and the women’s movement, described her as “a walking library on the women’s movement and leadership.”
‘’Many of us drank from her well of wisdom. She had grace, humility, elegance, and a firmness that comes from deep knowledge. She greatly contributed to the women’s gains in the 2010 constitution,” wrote Karua on X.
Politics
Ruto’s visit to Homa Bay comes hours after he appointed a team, led by Prof Makau Mutua, to develop a framework for compensating victims of protests and riots.
It is also Odinga’s first public appearance in weeks.
Also present is Siaya Governor James Orengo, making an appearance today, after getting back into the country on Tuesday, following weeks of speculation about his whereabouts.