This archive report was first published on 30 July 2019.
The late Bomet Governor Joyce Laboso succumbed to cancer at the Nairobi Hospital on Monday afternoon, July 15, 2019. Her husband, Edwin Abonyo, has announced that she will be buried in Kisumu County.
Laboso had been under medication for two weeks after arriving from London, where she had been hospitalised. She had been in Britain for nearly a month, undergoing treatment at the Royal Madden NHS Hospital, before being transferred to India for further treatment three weeks ago.
President Uhuru Kenyatta termed Laboso's death as a blow to the country's leadership, saying, "I have received the sad news of the passing away of Laboso with utter disbelief," in a statement.
Deputy President William Ruto praised Laboso for her hardworking nature and iconic style of leadership, saying, "Dr. Joyce Laboso exemplified the strength of a woman: gentle yet firm, intense, hardworking, resilient and pragmatic. She was an iconic leader, who focused and delivered on her constituents' interests," in a statement.
Laboso's death was mourned by leaders across the country, including NASA leader Raila Odinga, Ambassador Manoah Espisu, Chief Justice David Maraga, and Kericho Governor Paul Chepkwony, who had visited her while she was in Britain.
