Kenyan Minister Whose Wife was Deported for Embarrassing Him in Public

Ministers are arguably the second most powerful people in the executive arm of government after the Presidency which comprises the Head of State and his deputy. 

As such, ministers now referred to as Cabinet Secretaries are expected to carry themselves with decorum as a show of respect to the office they hold.

The same level of decorum is expected from their spouses and children. However, this was not the case for late ex-Trade Minister Julius Gikonyo Kiano who was subjected to several public humiliations by his first wife Ernestine Hammond. 

In an unexpected incident in 1966, the late Dr. Kiano was enjoying a drink with a woman seated next to him, only for his wife to show up and cause drama. 

A report indicated that this coupled with other episodes of public humiliation prompted Dr Kiano to seek help from the late retired President Daniel Moi who was then Minister of Home Affairs.

Moi intervened by deporting Ernestine via a Gazette notice dated 4 June 1966 which required her to vacate the country over claims of being disloyal.

"Ernestine Hammond Kiano had shown herself by act and speech to be disloyal and disaffected towards Kenya," the Gazette Notice read in part. 

File image of Dr. Kiano and his ex-wife Ernestine Hammond. [Photo: John Kamau]

Interestingly, Ernestine had renounced her United States citizenship two years before being deported.

At the time of her deportation, Kiano and Ernestine had been blessed with four children. The kids later joined their mother in the United States.

Later in 1966, Kiano married his second wife Jane Mumbi Kiano - a champion of women's rights and long-serving leader of the Maendeleo ya Wanawake organisation.

Dr. Kiano died in 2003 and left a will blocking his first wife from pursuing the estate he had left behind. The estate includes parcels of land in Nairobi and Murang'a.

Kiano's second wife died in October 2018 and is hailed as a trailblazer and a champion of women's rights.

Prior to her death, Mumbi had been awarded the First Class Chief of the Order of the Burning Spear award by Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta. 

She had previously been awarded Elder of the Burning Spear Award for the work in the 70s.