Former Attorney-General Sir Charles Njonjo Dies Aged 101, Cremated in Kariokor

Kenya’s first post-independence Attorney-General Sir Charles Mugane Njonjo has died aged 101.

Njonjo, popularly known as the Duke of Kabeteshire, died peacefully at 5.00 am on Sunday, according to his family.

Reports indicate that the body of the centenarian was cremated at the Kariokor Crematorium in line with his wishes.

“Charles Njonjo was very clear in his instructions that he be cremated immediately after his death; he didn’t want funeral-related fanfare. He wanted to be cremated almost immediately after death. So we have fulfilled his wish,” a family member told Capital FM News.

Njonjo was the only surviving member of Kenya’s independence Cabinet. He served as the Attorney-General between 1963 and 1979 and later as Constitutional Affairs Minister between 1980 and 1983.

President Kenyatta eulogized Njonjo as a national hero and an icon of Kenya’s progress through the years.

The president said the passing away of Njonjo was “a big blow not only to his immediate family, friends and relatives but to all Kenyans and indeed, the entire African continent because of his leading role in the founding of the Kenyan nation at independence.”

“As a nation, we owe a debt of gratitude to Hon. Njonjo and his generation of independence era leaders for their selfless contribution to the laying of the solid foundation upon which our country continues to thrive,” Kenyatta eulogized.

“Kenya's progressive constitutional and legal regime owes its robustness to Hon. Njonjo's splendid work when he served as the country's first post-independence Attorney General between 1963 and 1979, and as Constitutional Affairs Minister between 1980 and 1983.”