First Yatta MP Mutiso dies aged 91

The first Yatta MP Gideon Munyao Mutiso has died at the age of 91 years.

Mutiso’s death was announced by his family who said he died while undergoing treatment at the MP Shah Hospital, Nairobi on Wednesday.

“We, the Mutiso family wish to confirm the passing on of our patriarch on April 26, 2023, while undergoing treatment at the MP Shah Hospital," the family statement reads.

"We request prayers, support and privacy during this trying period. Updates on the funeral arrangements will be relayed as soon as possible."

The deceased was born in 1932 and was the longest-serving Yatta MP.

Mutiso was first elected to Parliament in 1963 on the APP ticket. He was re–elected to office in 1969 on a Kanu ticket.

The deceased was sentenced to nine and a half years in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiring to overthrow former President Jomo Kenyatta in 1971.

Mutiso was accused of sedition and later sentenced to serve nine years and six months at the Naivasha Maximum Prison.

After his release in 1983, he was re-elected back to Parliament where he served until 1997.

Yatta is one of the eight constituencies in Machakos county. Robert Basil is the current Yatta MP after emerging victorious in the 2022 general elections on a Wiper party ticket.