Ailing former President Mwai Kibaki is still at The Nairobi Hospital.
Kibaki, 89, was admitted to the hospital on March 9.
Initially, he was being treated for what was described as low blood pressure, but reports indicate he is being treated for a condition that affects his immune system.
“He is still hospitalised. He is in the VIP ward. Due to Covid-19, only his doctors and authorised visitors are allowed to see him,” a source told the Star.
But his private secretary Ngari Githuku insisted that Kibaki has not been hospitalised for that long.
“Was the retired President in hospital? You people probably have more information about his health than I do,” he told the Star on the phone.
On March 11, days after he was admitted, Githuku had told the Star that Kibaki was in the hospital for a routine check-up.
Kibaki, who served as Kenya’s third President between 2002-2013, has been in and out of hospital and some of the ailments are linked to his old age and the accident he had in December 2002 at the Machakos Junction.
On January 20, 2004, he was admitted to the facility for what doctors said was a blood clot in his right leg. He was diagnosed with mild high blood pressure at the time. He was discharged eight days later.
In 2016, the former head of state was flown to South Africa where he successfully underwent surgery on the carotid artery.
In September 2019, Kibaki was in London for a series of medical check-ups. His knee was also examined.
In June last year, Kibaki was in hospital after complaining of pain in the lower abdomen.
Image: FILE
Kibaki has taken a low profile since he retired in 2013 after 10 years at the helm of power.
He was last seen in public in February last year when he turned up at Parliament Buildings where the body of his predecessor Daniel arap Moi lay in state.
Kibaki joined politics soon after Kenya gained Independence in 1963. He served as Finance minister between 1969 and 1982 and Vice President between 1978 and 1988.
He later had a falling out with Moi and during the eve of agitation for multipartyism in early 1990, he resigned from Kanu and formed the Democratic Party.
Kibaki unsuccessfully challenged Moi in the 1992 and 1997 presidential races, earning him the position of the Official Opposition in 1998.
In the run-up to the 2002 General Election, Kibaki joined forces with other politicians including Raila Odinga, Charity Ngilu, Moody Awori and Kijana Wamalwa (died in 2003) to form the National Rainbow Coalition.
Kibaki was picked as the coalition’s flag-bearer and he defeated the then Kanu candidate Uhuru Kenyatta. Uhuru, the current President, had been picked by Moi to run against Kibaki.
Kibaki’s timeline
1931 – Year of birth
1955 – Graduated from Makerere University
1960 – Chief executive officer of Kanu
1961 – Married former First Lady Lucy Kibaki (died in 2016)
1963 – MP for Donholm now Makadara constituency
1966 – Minister for Commerce and Industry
1969 – Minister for Finance and Economic Planning
1974 – Moved to Othaya as area MP
1978 – Named Vice President
1988 – Fell out with Moi
1991 – Quit Kanu
1992 – Founded Democratic Party. Ran for President and came third.
1997 – Ran against Moi and came second.
1998 – Leader of the Opposition
2002 – DP among other opposition parties formed a coalition NARC. Won the December 2002 presidential election
2013 – Quit active politics
Was re-elected MP in 1979, 1983, 1988, 1992, 1997, 2002 and 2007 elections. BY THE STAR