Uhuru eulogises lawyer Nzamba Kitonga as legal stalwart

President Uhuru Kenyatta has led the nation in mourning one of Kenya's top lawyers Phillip Nzamba Kitonga who passed away on Saturday at the age of 64 years.

In his message of comfort to the family, friends, relatives and the legal fraternity, the President described the departed Senior Counsel as a constitutional law stalwart and a patriotic Kenyan with unmatched legal prowess.

"I am deeply saddened by the death of my friend Senior Counsel Nzamba Kitonga, a fine constitutional lawyer and a trailblazer whose successes in public service are finely documented.

"We all remember and are forever indebted to Nzamba and his Committee of Experts for midwifing the 2010 Constitution and for his many exploits as a lawyer of high standing," the President eulogised.

The Head of State said the death of Kitonga is a major blow to Kenya especially now that the country is gearing up for fundamental constitutional reforms through the ongoing Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) process.

“Senior Counsel Nzamba Kitonga played a major role in the drafting of the 2010 Constitution and as a country, we really needed his input as we take an audit of it through the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).

“It is extremely sad that the cruel hand of death has snatched him from us at a time when our country is entering a constitutional moment,” President Kenyatta wrote.

President Kenyatta prayed to God to comfort and give fortitude to the family, relatives and friends of the late Senior Counsel as they come to terms with his sudden death.

Kitonga is said to have collapsed while attending a funeral at Mutito, his rural village in Kitui East Constituency and died while being rushed to the hospital.

 The lawyer is reported to have become unconscious at the funeral, prompting his wife who had accompanied him to evacuate him to Nairobi for treatment.

 His condition worsened upon reaching Machakos Town and was pronounced dead at Shalom Hospital.