Gloria Orwoba is a Kenyan politician who has served as a nominated Senator representing women in the Senate since 2022.
She is also a co-founder of ‘The Uji Ya Glo Nutrition Programme’, which for years provided a cup of porridge and two slices of bread to pupils in 13 primary schools in Bobasi constituency, Kisii county.
WoK delves into the life and career of this remarkable woman:
A humble beginning
Orwoba was born in 1986 in Nairobi. Raised by a single father, she grew up in Nairobi but spent most of her holidays in her paternal home in Kisii.
Her education journey began at State House Primary School, where she excelled at playing lawn tennis.
She later proceeded to St George’s School for Girls in Kilimani, where she took up swimming and was active in the drama club.
According to her, she wore makeup on her first day of school in form one. “Hii make up watu wananisumbua nayo kwa mtandao,” she told The Standard.
After her KCSE, Gloria proceeded to Nairobi University to pursue a diploma in Architecture and later a degree in social work from the same university.
In an interview, she told The Standard that she bought her first car at 19. She had always desired to own a car because her family never owned one.
Controversy
Earlier this year, the senator made headlines when she was ejected from senate chambers for wearing white blood-stained trousers in a bold move advocating for the provision of free sanitary pads to school girls and women in prison.
Her bold act received heavy backlash on social media, with some criticizing while others lauded her in equal measure.
In an Interview with Hot 96, she contemplated quitting Twitter following the backlash and cyberbullying.
Earlier this month, she received a six-month ban over her unsubstantiated allegations of corruption and sexual harassment within the parliament premises.
One of the statements that landed her in trouble was that she had never slept with staff members or bribed anyone and was therefore being discriminated from going on trips and was not receiving services from some offices.
The parliamentary powers and privileges committee took her remarks seriously and accused her of insinuating that some members were trading sexual services and bribes to receive some services.
She defied the committee’s summons and was therefore suspended from parliament premises until February 2024.
A diverse Career
Orwoba has a diverse career background.
She started her career as an architect at the UN in Nairobi. In 2010, she moved to the Netherlands to work as a projects manager before returning to Kenya to take care of her young son.
Around this time, she got married to a Danish soldier and moved to Sweden, where she started a consultancy company dealing with immigration issues.
Later, the family moved to Denmark, where she worked as a Facebook Data Network manager.
All this while, she was keeping a close eye on Kenyan politics.
The Political Odessey
Orwoba returned to Kenya in 2019 determined to become the first female MP in Bobasi Constituency, Kisii County.
However, many senior party leaders allegedly closed their doors on her ambitions, demanding that she must have at least 10 years of experience before running for the MP seat.
According to her, President William Ruto was the only politician who encouraged her political ambitions.
She therefore sought to run for the MP seat in 2022 under the UDA banner but lost in the nomination stages.
She worked in the presidential campaign secretariat before being nominated as senator.
Beyond politics
According to Wikipedia, Orwoba has been married twice and has three children.
The outspoken senator looks up to Millicent Odhiambo, whom she describes as ‘Real’ and never swayed by people’s opinions.
Her hobbies are sleeping, watching television, traveling, and listening to music.
