Former president Uhuru Kenyatta has paid tribute to Dalmas Otieno, the former cabinet minister and veteran politician, who died on Sunday in Nairobi at the age of 80.
In a statement, Kenyatta described Otieno as “an exemplary statesman” whose contributions to Kenya’s social and economic development left a lasting legacy. “His calm demeanour, wisdom, and commitment to dialogue set him apart as a leader who always placed Kenya’s unity and progress above all else,” he said.
Otieno’s death, confirmed by his family, came after a period of treatment for an undisclosed illness. Leaders across the political divide have since mourned him as a voice of reason and a reformer who shaped Kenya’s democratic and governance landscape.
Born in 1945 in Rongo, Migori County, Otieno trained in applied economics at Makerere University before working in the financial services sector. He entered politics in the 1980s, serving as MP for Rongo and holding ministerial portfolios in industrialisation, labour, and transport.
He is best remembered for his tenure as minister for public service in the Grand Coalition government, where he spearheaded reforms to digitise services and modernise the civil service.
Though he lost his parliamentary seat in 2017, Otieno remained active in public life, including a stint at the Salaries and Remuneration Commission. He made an unsuccessful bid for Migori governor in 2022.
