Inside the last days of late Isiolo South MP Tubi Bidu

Isiolo South MP Tubi Bidu Mohamed when he was sworn into office at Parliament buildings, Nairobi. [File, Standard]

Isiolo South MP Mohamed Tubi Bidu, who died at a Nairobi hospital on Wednesday,  had been ailing for years before he passed on at around 6:30 pm at the facility, family and close aides have said.

From midday Wednesday, the first-time legislator's condition reportedly turned critical, with medics forced to transfer him to Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Some relatives and those close to him had travelled to Nairobi from Isiolo in order to monitor his condition closely.

Tubi was taken to the same hospital early in August where he was mostly in ICU suffering from an illness in the thorax. He was discharged from the ICU about a month ago but advised to stay in an amenity wing for closer observation by his doctor.

The deceased, who won the seat in the 2022 general election on a Jubilee party ticket, fell sick and was admitted to a Nairobi hospital before flying abroad for further treatment days after capturing the seat. He was sworn in months later after his return.

The legislator has been hospitalized several times and was once again flown to Europe for treatment when he fell ill while on Parliamentary duty.

News of his death caused a stir in Isiolo town and major centres from the Constituency like Garba Tula, Kinna and Kulamawe with residents calling local vernacular radio stations to ascertain the report.

Tubi served as the first Speaker of the County Assembly of Isiolo and also vied for the Isiolo South seat in 2017 and but lost the election.

He was a career wildlife conservationist who graduated from a university in Tanzania and served as a senior and chief warden at Isiolo's Shaba, Buffalo Springs and Bisanadi national reserves and Samburu and Maasai national reserves for more than three decades.

The MP and his late wife Rahma who died in 2022 are survived by four children.

He will be remembered for focusing on improving education standards in his Constituency using bursaries to support bright but disadvantaged students.

Hussein Ali Abduba, the former Chairman of defunct County Council of Isiolo, an aide and clanmate said the late MP will be buried at a local cemetery in Isiolo on Thursday in accordance with the Islamic faith.