Senator Juma Boy to be buried at his Vanga home, Cord cancels rallies in his honour

Kwale Senator Boy Juma Boy will be laid to rest at his Vanga home, Kwale County on Monday.

Boy died on Sunday after a short illness at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi. His body was transported to the South Coast on Sunday night.

He became the youngest MP when he succeeded his father, Juma Boy, as Matuga MP in 1983.

Boy senior died before the election which would have seen him vie for Kwale Central MP. He had served in Matuga since 1974.

He retained the Matuga seat in the 1988 and 1992 elections but lost in 1997 and 2002 and did not vie in 2007. He once served as Kanu Chief Whip.

Boy was elected Kwale Senator in March 4, 2013 general election, after garnering 60,886 votes against Chirau Mwakwere's 41,753.

He had been a loyal supporter of the Opposition and did not spare those who disrespected leader Raila Odinga.

The senator once told off leaders in the county and the government over development, saying they were only interested in taking over people's land and resources.

But he did not criticise President Uhuru Kenyatta when they recently shared a podium at Kikoneni Primary School during the launch of a water project.

This was seen as a show of respect and humility.

Boy had also been opposing the extension of Base Titanium mining area to locations including Lunga Lunga, Vanga and Mafisini.

Mourning him, Raila said Boy was a visionary leader and a gifted orator whose untimely passing will "no doubt be felt across the nation."

President Uhuru Kenyatta described Boy as an astute politician who will be remembered for his immaculate use of Kiswahili.

Read: Kwale Senator Boy Juma Boy dies in hospital, Raila and Uhuru mourn

Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka and Secretary General Hassan Omar mourned Boy saying the Cord coalition and the Kwale people have lost a gallant political soldier.

“Boy was an orator,” said Kalonzo.

Omar said Boy was the brains behind the Coast Senate Group, where Omar is the secretary.

“Boy Juma Boy was a warrior. I will fondly miss him. Juma Boy’s death has made this day extremely dark for me,” Hassan said while addressing supporters at the Kadongo ground in Mombasa

He said Boy ushered him and many other youthful leaders from Coast into politics.

Meanwhile, Cord has cancelled a scheduled rally in Kwale on Monday in honor of the late Senator.

The rally was part of the opposition’s four-day voter registration sensitization campaign and also to receive former Kenya’s ambassador to Tanzania Chirau Ali Mwakwere.

Mwakwere alias Zipapa has become the first diplomat to resign for political purposes.

Mwakwere, ditched President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party for Raila Odinga's ODM.

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