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Kibaki was transformational leader, true pan-Africanist - Museveni
Former President Mwai Kibaki (left) shakes hands with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni (right) during the Makerere University 90 years anniversary in Kampala on August 4, 2013 year. File Phot/PPS
President Museveni has eulogized the former president of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki, who was announced dead Friday afternoon, as a transformational leader, true Pan-Africanist.
According to Mr Museveni, Kibaki was active in deepening the roots of African unity and cooperation for peace, development and security while at the helm of Kenya’s leadership.
“This afternoon, I have received sad news, announcing the death of H.E. Hon. Emilio Mwai Kibaki, the third President of the Republic of Kenya. This is a sorrowful moment for the people of Kenya, the East African Community and the African Continent. I extend, on behalf of the people of Uganda, heartfelt sympathies to the family of the late President, H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, President of the Republic of Kenya and all Kenyans, upon the loss of a Great Statesman,” Mr Museveni said in a condolence message released Friday afternoon.
“Mzee Mwai Kibaki was a transformational leader and a true Pan-Africanist. While at the helm of Kenya’s leadership, he played a fundamental role in achieving socio-economic transformation and prosperity for Kenyan people,” Mr Museveni added.
Mr Museveni who has been president since 1986 when he took over power through a guerrilla struggle urged the young generation to study Mzee Kibaki’s exemplary deeds and emulate the man he described as a “Great Son of Africa.”
“As he rests from his earthly responsibilities, let the young generation study his exemplary deeds and emulate this Great Son of Africa,” he said.
Kibaki who led the East African nation for more than a decade died at the age of 90, his successor Uhuru Kenyatta announced on Friday.
"It is a sad day for us as a country. We have lost a great leader," Kenyatta said in an address on state television.
Kenyan politicians, African leaders and former colonial ruler Britain were among those to send their condolences.
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Kibaki, a veteran politician whose career dated back to the birth of independent Kenya, served as the country's third president from December 2002 to April 2013, taking over from the authoritarian rule of Daniel Arap Moi.
His rule saw the most violent election in Kenya's history when more than 1,100 people died in bloody ethnic battles after disputed 2007 polls, but he also oversaw the adoption of a new constitution with reforms aimed at preventing such unrest.
Kibaki left a legacy of strong growth in the regional economic powerhouse, launching major infrastructure projects and boosting the struggling health and education sectors.
But his rule was also marred by rampant government corruption and his lavish spending on flagship projects contributed to the country's debt mountain.
Kibaki had kept a low profile since leaving office, making few public appearances.
Details about his death have not been officially disclosed. However his health had fluctuated since a serious car accident in 2002 and he had been in and out of hospital in recent years.
Kenyatta said a state funeral would be held, without giving a date.
He also ordered a period of national mourning from Friday until sunset on the day he is buried, with all flags on public buildings to be flown at half-mast.
'Visionary statesman'
"As a leading figure in Kenya's post-independence history... Kibaki earned the biding respect and affection of the people of this nation," Kenyatta said.
"President Kibaki will be forever remembered as the gentleman of Kenyan politics, a brilliant debater whose eloquence, wit, and charm won the day time-and-time again."
Tributes also came from across Kenya and the African continent, from Burundi to Zambia, as well as regional blocs.
"The region shares in your loss of an iconic leader & visionary statesman," Workneh Gebeyehu, executive secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), said on Twitter.
"Kibaki is one of the freedom fighters of our country, he served this country for many years with diligence, forthrightness, honesty and transparency," said veteran Kenyan leader Raila Odinga, who is making his fifth run for the presidency in August elections.
"We mourn the passing of former President Kibaki, a true statesman who ushered in a new democratic and economic era in Kenyan politics," British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriott said on Twitter.
Additional reporting by AFP
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