Kenya's Sir Charles Njonjo is dead at 101

Former Attorney General Charles Njonjo has died aged 101.

President Uhuru Kenyatta announced the death of Mr Njonjo, the only surviving member of Kenya's independence Cabinet, on Sunday.

Njonjo, who proclaimed himself the Duke of Kabeteshire –and therefore Sir Charles Njonjo-, passed on at 5am Sunday, President Kenyatta said.

“The passing away of Hon. Njonjo is a big blow not only to his immediate family, friends and relatives but to all Kenyans and indeed, the entire African continent because of his leading role in the founding of the Kenyan nation at independence,” the president said.

“As a nation, we owe a debt of gratitude to Hon. Njonjo and his generation of independence era leaders for their selfless contribution to the laying of the solid foundation upon which our country continues to thrive.”

The Head of State pointed out that the country’s progressive constitutional and legal regime owes its robustness to Mr Njonjo's “splendid work when he served as the country's first post-independence Attorney General between 1963 and 1979 and as Constitutional Affairs Minister between 1980 and 1983.”

“On behalf of the Kenyan nation, my family and on my own behalf, I send deepest and heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and relatives of Hon. Njonjo, and indeed all Kenyans,” President Kenyatta said.

“May God the Almighty grant each one of us grace and fortitude as we mourn and come to terms with the passing away of Hon. Charles Mugane Njonjo was not only our national hero but an icon of Kenya's progress through the years.”