Mama Ida Odinga and Tanzania President Samia Suluhu (mugshot)./FILE
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s widow, Kenya's Ambassador to the United Nations Environment Programme Mama Ida Odinga, has sent a condolence message to Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan following the death of her husband, Mzee Hafidh Ameir.
In statement of September 7, 2026, Ida expressed her “profound sense of personal sorrow” and conveyed her heartfelt condolences to President Samia over the loss of the First Gentleman of Tanzania.
Ameir died on Monday morning at Emilio Mzena Memorial Hospital in Zanzibar, where he was receiving treatment. His death was announced by Tanzania’s Vice President Deogratius Ndejembi.
Ameir, who became Tanzania’s First Gentleman after President Samia assumed office in March 2021, largely maintained a low public profile.
Before becoming First Gentleman, Ameir was known primarily for his work in agriculture and academia. He was described as an agriculturalist and retired agricultural officer from Zanzibar.
Available biographical accounts identify him as an agricultural academic who kept a low profile even after his wife rose through Tanzania's political ranks.
His professional life was largely separate from the political career of his wife, allowing him to remain away from the intense public attention that accompanied her rise from government official to Tanzania's first female president.
Ameir married Samia Suluhu Hassan in 1978, years before she entered the highest levels of Tanzania's political leadership.
Ida described Mzee Hafidh as a man of “exceptional character and quiet fortitude”, saying his presence provided support for President Samia as she served the Tanzanian people.
She said his contribution to Tanzania was meaningful despite being largely made away from the public eye.
“History will remember him as a man who gave faithfully and asked for very little in return,” Ida said.
Ida also drew from her own experience of bereavement as she reached out to President Samia.
She said the two shared a painful experience as African women who had lost their husbands while carrying responsibilities of public service.
“Having lost my own husband, the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga, I understand with great intimacy the particular weight that accompanies this loss,” she said.
Ida said such grief included the silence that follows the loss of a familiar presence and the strength required of a woman who must continue serving while mourning.
She described the burden as one that “few are called to carry, and fewer still understand.”
She further assured President Samia that she was not alone in her grief, saying the people of East Africa and the wider African continent stood in solidarity with her and Tanzania.
“It is my sincere prayer that in this season of grief, Your Excellency will find solace in the abiding love of family and the comfort of faith,” Ida said.
She also prayed for the family to find strength during the period of mourning.
“May the Almighty, in His boundless mercy, receive Mzee Hafidh Ameir into His eternal peace,” she said.
Ida asked God to grant President Samia, her children and others mourning the death “the strength and grace that this hour demands.”
She concluded the message by conveying her “most sincere sympathies” to the Tanzanian President.
