Amos Wako is the current senator of Busia county. Previously, he was Kenya’s attorney general from 1991 to 1997.
The Busia senator oversaw Kenya’s change from one party rule to multi-party politics, the change of regimes from the late Daniel Arap Moi to Mwai Kibaki and the promulgation of the new Constitution among other historic events.
Age
Amos Wako was born on 31st July 1946.
Education
He attended Kakamega School for his O level and Alliance High School for his A level. Amos has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of London, a Bachelor of Laws from the University College of Dar es Salam, and a Master of Laws from the University of London.
Career
In March 1969, he began working for Kaplan and Stratton and became a partner from April 1972 until May 1991 when he was appointed attorney general.
From 1971 to 1981, he served as the chairman of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
From 1991 to 2011, Wako served as the attorney general of Kenya. During his twenty years stint as an attorney general, he played a number of roles and was a member of a number of associations, such as:
- Member Council of Legal Education
- Member Council of International Bar Association
- Member of the International Commission of Jurists
- Legal adviser to Young Men Christian Association (Y.M.C.A) and the Kenya Boy Scouts Association
- Member Faculty Board of Law
- O.A.U Committee of Experts on the O.A.U Charter Review Committee and African Charter of Human and Peoples Rights
The former attorney general also drafted the proposed new Constitution of Kenya based on the Constitution of Kenya bill as drafted by the National Constitutional Conference and as amended by parliament. This Constitution was nicknamed The Wako Draft. However, in 2005, this Constitution was voted against by Kenyans during the famous “Yes” “No” campaigns. The “No” team headed by Raila Odinga won.
In 2013, he vied for the Busia senatorial seat of Busia and won, making him the first senator of Busia county. He won the seat under the Orange Democratic Party led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Family
Amos Wako’s first wife is named Flora Ngaira Wako, whose father was a wealthy and respected civil servant, the first African Deputy Chair of the Public Service Commission in 1962. Wako and Flora have two children, Julius and Debora Wako.
Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu is Wako’s de facto second wife. The senator met and fell in love with Philomena, a mother of three, in 1997 and the two have been an item since then.
Trivia
In October 2009, the United States of America gave him a travel ban for deliberately blocking political reforms after the 2007-2008 political violence.
In November 2019, the United States State Department announced he together with his wife and child were barred from travel to the US due to significant corruption.
Covid-19: Near Death Experience
The former AG contracted Covid-19 prompting his handlers to have him admitted at a city hospital on February 17. He thought he was going to die and found solace in spiritual books. The 74 year old, who was put on oxygen, admitted on an interview aired on KBC that covid was no respecter of no wealth, power and accomplishments.
“For a few hours or so, I thought ‘this is my end.’ My end has come. That’s why I had to go spiritual, to prepare myself for where I may find myself if everything else failed.
“I was now preparing myself for the after[life],” the Busia senator shared.
