Former Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo dies at 54

Veteran politician and Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga’s cousin Jakoyo Midiwo is dead.

The 54-year-old ex-MP died on Monday, June 14 at Nairobi Hospital after suffering cardiac arrest.

Jakoyo’s cousin Ruth Odinga while confirming the tragic news said the former legislator suffered a cardiac arrest.

She, however, did not divulge more information about the death but mourned Jakoyo as a great leader.

“It is true, Jakoyo is dead. He suffered a cardiac arrest,” said Ruth amid sobs.

Ruth described the death as a low moment for their family and said they had lost an important person in their life.

His death comes barely three days after his sister also passed and about a week after they buried their uncle

ODM in a tweet described Midiwo as a gallant son of the soil who never shied away from speaking the truth.

“We have just lost a gallant son of the soil, a founder member of the Change Movement. He was a defender of the party and never shied away from speaking the truth.”

Jakoyo served as the MP for Gem constituency between 2002 and 2017. He has been eyeing a political comeback ahead of the 2022 elections.

He was last seen in public when President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila launched a water project and a road project in Gem.

Prior to the 2017 elections, Jakoyo fell out with Raila’s ODM party and decamped the party to contest as an independent.

His death is however an enormous loss for the ODM team that had already lured him back to the fold and had been pegging their hopes of relying on him to help consolidate support.

Jakoyo was also one of the leading champions of the Building Bridges Initiative and had been hoping to use the platform to launch his comeback to politics.