Mama Sarah Obama dies in Kisumu aged 99

Sarah Obama, former US President Barack Obama’s grandmother, has died in Kisumu aged 99.

According to the family, Mama Sarah passed on at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital after a short illness at around 4.45am.

Several leaders led by ODM chief Raila Odinga have since come out to express their condolences to the family of the deceased.

Odinga said: “In the passing of Mama Sarah Obama, we have lost a matriarch who lived ahead of her time. She single-handedly kept the family going long after the husband departed.”

In the passing of Mama Sarah Obama, we have lost a matriarch who lived ahead of her time. She single-handedly kept the family going long after the husband departed. pic.twitter.com/v2AxeNKw6N

— Raila Odinga (@RailaOdinga) March 29, 2021

Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang Nyong’o pointed out that Mama Sarah was very charming and warm to those who visited her in her home in Kogelo.

“She was my late mother’s friend and a dear grandmother to all of us,” said Prof. Nyong’o in a statement.

He added that Mama Sarah was a philanthropist who helped to mobilize funds to pay school fees for many orphans and vulnerable children.

“Mama Sarah was not only a patriarch of the larger Obama family but a motherly figure to many people. She was a philanthropist who helped to mobilize funds t pay school fees for many orphans and vulnerable children. She also supported many widows,” said the Governor.