A veteran Kenyan Senator of Somali roots died at a hospital in Nairobi early on February 15 in the morning.
Yusuf Haji, the Senator of Garissa County in northern Kenya, died on Monday morning.
His family and the Kenyan government confirmed his death. Senator Haji is set to be laid to rest later in the day.
Prior to his election as Garissa Senator, Haji had served under the late President Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi as a powerful and feared Provincial Commissioner (PC).
Thereafter, the independence party – KANU – nominated him to parliament.
He has also served as an Assistant Minister in the Office of the President, Minister of Defense, and Acting Minister of Internal Security.
In the last two years, the 80-year old politician has also served as the Chairman of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Taskforce.
He submitted the taskforce’s report to President Uhuru Kenyatta and ex-Prime Minister Raila Odinga last year.
Kenyatta and Odinga led other prominent Kenyans in mourning the death of Haji, who has been reportedly sick for quite some time.