Former US President Barack Obama’s grandmother, Sarah Obama, who was reported to be unwell for a week, have passed away in the early hours of Monday at a hospital in the western town of Kisumu.
This was disclosed by her daughter Marsat Onyango to Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper.
Mrs Obama who was affectionately called Granny Sarah by the former president, defended her grandson during his 2008 presidential campaign, when he was said to be Muslim and not born in the US.
Her home became a tourist attraction when he was elected as the first black US president.
Sarah Obama was the third and youngest wife of Barack Obama’s grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama, President Obama’s paternal grandfather.
She was born in 1922 in a village on Lake Victoria, according to AFP. She was a Muslim and part of Kenya’s Luo ethnic group.
Before her grandson became a household name, Sarah Obama was well known for the hot porridge and doughnuts she served at a local school, AFP reports.
She became more widely known when Mr Obama visited Kenya in 2006. Mr Obama also visited his step-grandmother’s home in the village of Kogelo in 2018, after leaving office.
A family spokesman said Mrs Obama had been unwell for a week, but did not have Covid-19.
She will be buried later on Monday.
