Egerton University lecturers mourn Dr Laboso
What you need to know:
- Dr Laboso taught at the university’s Njoro campus before she won a British scholarship for a PhD programme in London.
- Many of her close colleagues at the department of communication poured accolades befitting a distinguished scholar.
- Former Egerton University vice-chancellor Prof Ezra Maritim described Dr Laboso as a hardworking and courageous scholar.”
Even as leaders eulogised Bomet Governor Joyce Laboso, her former colleagues at Egerton University described her as a bold and brilliant scholar.
Dr Laboso taught at the university’s Njoro campus before she won a British scholarship for a PhD programme in London.
Many of her close colleagues at the department of communication poured accolades befitting a distinguished scholar.
“Dr Laboso was a jovial and sociable personality who loved women and pushed for recognition of their rights,” said Vice- Chancellor Prof Rose Mwonya.
Interestingly Prof Mwonya and Prof Rose Odhiambo who is the director in charge of welfare at the university, were planning to visit Dr Laboso at the hospital on Saturday.
BRILLIANT SCHOLAR
“She was a brave and brilliant scholar who believed in pushing for the rights of marginalised girls,” said Prof Odhiambo.
She added: “An hour before the sad news (of her death), we had planned to visit and pray with her. It is devastating we never got an opportunity to express our love and wish her quick recovery.”
Dr Laboso was described as a scholar above petty tribal inclinations.
“She rarely spoke her mother tongue and this made it difficult to realise she was from the Kalenjin community,” said Prof Odhiambo adding that Dr Laboso was so passionate about women leadership and girls’ education that she would stop at nothing to push for their agenda.
Former Egerton University vice- chancellor Prof Ezra Maritim and Prof Catherine Kitetu described Dr Laboso as a “lively, hardworking and courageous scholar.”
GOOD STUDENT
“She was a good student and unlike other students who disappeared after they were told to correct their work, Dr Laboso followed instructions and that is why she was a notch above other students,” said Prof Kitetu.
Prof Maritim described her as a “polite, intelligent and very accommodative student with many ideas which made our work as her supervisor easy.”
The governor died at a time when students from Bomet County at the university planned to invite her to give a key note address following increased cases of early pregnancies in the county.
“The students from Bomet had identified her as the only person to save girls who were dropping out of primary and secondary schools due to early pregnancies,” said Prof Maritim.
Her classmate at Kenyatta University during her undergraduate studies Mr Richard Marundu described her as an approachable scholar.
PLEASANT
He added: “She was very pleasant person to work with and down to earth, jovial and friendly colleague who had no boundaries of friendships.”
The current chairman of department of Languages Dr Dishon Kweya described her as a strategist” who made the learning at Institute of Women Gender and Development studies vibrant during her stay at the Njoro campus.
“She handled her colleague’s personal problems like hers and distinguished herself as a people’s scholar who carried their burdens like they belonged to her,” said Dr Kweya.
