Former Education Minister And Long-Time MP Is Dead
Oloo Aringo, a former cabinet minister and member of parliament, has died. The former Alego Usonga MP died on Friday, November 1, according to MP Sam Atandi.
Atandi, MP for Alego Usonga constituency, announced the former MP’s death on his official Twitter account. According to Atandi, Aringo died while being treated at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi.
I break the sad news of the sudden demise of Hon Oloo Aringo, former Cabinet Minister & Mp Alego Usonga . Hon Aringo passed on this evening at Aga Khan hospital in Nairobi @NationAfrica @citizentvkenya
— Hon Sam Atandi (@SamuelAtandi) November 1, 2024
“I break the sad news of the sudden demise of Oloo Aringo, former Cabinet Minister, & MP Alego Usonga. Aringo passed on this evening at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi,” Atandi revealed.
Aringo was a prominent politician not only in Alego Usonga but throughout the country.
Oloo Aringo was a Member of Parliament for the Alego Constituency for two terms, first from 1974 to 1988 and then from 1997 to 2002.
Aringo, known for his long tenure in Parliament, had a lasting impact as Minister for Education under President Daniel Arap Moi.
He played a key role in implementing Kenya’s 8-4-4 education system, a major overhaul that reshaped the country’s educational structure and remains an important part of his legacy in the public sector.
Aringo also introduced bills in Parliament that were passed into law, converting Moi, Maseno, and Egerton universities into public institutions.
Furthermore, the government approved and promoted a deliberate policy of establishing technological institutes through fundraising in the eight provinces under his rule: Nairobi, Rift Valley, Western, Nyanza, Central, Eastern, North Eastern, and Coast.
Eliud Owalo, Deputy Chief of Staff in the President’s Executive Office, praised the former Minister as ‘eloquent and intelligent’.
It’s with great shock and utter disbelief that I have learnt of the demise of former Cabinet Minister Peter “Castro” Oloo Aringo.
— Eliud Owalo, FIHRM, EGH (@EliudOwalo) November 2, 2024
Early this year on 14th January 2024, I visited Hon. Oloo Aringo at his Nairobi residence where we had a lengthy conversation on various isssues.
We… pic.twitter.com/yseDEcfjr8
“We will remember Oloo Aringo as an eloquent and intelligent Cabinet Minister;an Avid Debator during his stint as MP; and subsequently as a pioneer of Kenya’s Parliamentary Service Comission(PSC),” stated Owalo.
Owalo expressed shock at the sudden death, recalling a recent meeting with him during which they had candid discussions about the nation’s development.
“Early this year on 14th January 2024, I visited Hon. Oloo Aringo at his Nairobi residence where we had a lengthy conversation on various issues.”
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The 83-year-old had a vibrant academic background. He attended St. Mary’s School in Yala, Kenya, before earning a first-class bachelor’s degree in history, economics, and politics from the University of Nairobi.
He also pursued his Master’s Degree after winning a Commonwealth scholarship to study international comparative education at Toronto University in Canada.
His demise has also been mourned by University don Nicholas Kut Ochogo, who lost to Atandi in the 2022 Alego-Usonga parliamentary election. Ochogo had met with the former MP weeks before his demise.
“It is barely one month since we met and now you are gone. I am traumatized upon hearing your sudden demise, may your soul RIP,” Ochogo mourned.
Former Education Minister And Long-Time MP Is Dead
