A renowned Kenyan political analyst has now claimed that the former Cabinet Secretary for Education, Professor George Magoha, died of “heart break”.
Posting on his verified Twitter handle, Professor Mutahi Ngunyi has claimed that the departed neurosurgeon succumbed to a disappointment resulting from a recent national activity.
This is after the family of Professor Magoha had confirmed that the then 71 year-old had died of heart-related complications.
Magoha died at the Nairobi Hospital on Tuesday, January 24, 2023, at around 5:30pm.
He had been rushed to the facility after he collapsed at his Nairobi home at around 5pm. Efforts by medics to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.
Magoha, a urologist by specialisation, served as the Chairperson of the Kenya Association of Urological Surgeons (KAUS) from 1997 to 2013.
He undertook his primary education in Yala, Siaya County, and Nairobi before joining Starehe Boys Centre and Strathmore College for his high school education.
He then proceeded to the University of Lagos in Nigeria, where he studied Medicine. He furthered his studies in Surgery and Urology at Lagos University Teaching Hospital, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin, Ireland and Royal Postgraduate Medical School Hammersmith Hospital, London, Department of Urology.
Prof. Magoha established his career in surgery at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital as an intern and rose to the position of Senior Resident and Clinical Lecturer in Surgery.
He also served as a lecturer in the same hospital and as a Consultant Surgeon in various leading hospitals in Lagos, Nigeria.
Prof. Magoha joined the University of Nairobi as a lecturer in Urological Surgery in 1988 and rose through the ranks to become a full Professor of Surgery in 2000.
He has served in various administrative positions at the university, rising from the Chairperson of the Academic Department of Surgery in 1999, Dean of the School of Medicine, Principal of the College of Health Sciences, Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Administration and Finance to Vice-Chancellor in January 2005.
Prof. Magoha has published more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and supervised to completion of more than 40 Master of Medicine (Surgery) students.
He is a member of many professional bodies in Urology and Surgery including British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS), Société Internationale d’Urologie (SIU), among others.
He is actively involved in research in male erectile dysfunction, prostate, testicular and penile cancers, circumcision and HIV/AIDs.
The surgery professor is married to Dr. Barbara O. Magoha, with whom they have a son, Dr. Michael Magoha.
His academic and professional profile has earned him acres of paragraphs in the education sector, a reputation that was witnessed during his time as Cabinet Secretary for Education.
But according to Professor Ngunyi, the recent KCSE results announced by the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) could have played part in Magoha’s demise and not a cardiac arrest.
“I remember George Magoha during Covid at State House. He arrived with a box full of documents. He wanted more funds to expand schools. He was a giant with a kind soul. He did not die of a heart attack. He died of a heartbreak especially after Kisii KCSE results. How sad,” Mutahi lamented.
Machogu and Wheelbarrows government sent the good professor to his early grave…
What else could he have done, seeing a quality empire he struggled to build for years brought down overnight by some visionless, rudderless and clueless dimwits..!— Mr. FIX IT! (@Sabato_Fred) January 24, 2023
Social media users also appeared to agree with Mr. Ngunyi, saying the released KCSE results were a mockery to the legacy that Magoha cemented.
It is painful seeing someone watering down what you built after struggling fighting the KNEC exam cartels. Magoha has died a bitter man, the current regime led by the CS Education has betrayed what Magoha stood for. Sad! Rest in peace Philanthropist
— Sammy Edambo HSC (@EdamboSammy) January 24, 2023
Mutahi Ngunyi says Magoha died of Heart BREAK not attack after Kisii KCSE results. Many Kenyans have questioned the authenticity of the results after some schools recorded a sudden increase in the number of candidates who got an A grade. May your soul rest in eternal peace Prof. pic.twitter.com/JZVoND9VKR
— Joachim Omolo (@omolobeste) January 25, 2023
On the University of Nairobi profile, Magoha listed his interests as reading international affairs, walking and jogging, listening to classical music, reading history and gardening and tree planting.
(ADDITIONAL INFO COURTESY OF The Standard).