Fare Thee Well, Orie Rogo Manduli, Our Kenyan Fashionista

Kenyans were sent into mourning on Wednesday, September 8, following the death of the renowned, controversial, female politician, Orie Rogo Manduli. She was 73.

Her death was confirmed by her family who said that Manduli died at her Riverside home in Nairobi.

Born Mary Orie Rogo in Maseno to Gordon Rogo and Zeruiah Adhiambo, who were both educators, Manduli attended NNg’iya Girls High School, then Butere Girls, and then Machakos Girls.

She proceeded to Machakos Teachers College where she got married immediately and changed her name to Mary Orie Rogo Ondieki. The two were blessed with three kids, all girls, but divorced five years later.

In 1980, she married a Zambian named Norman Manduli, where she got the name Manduli.  Norman died in 2003.

One of the most notable things about Manduli is that she was quite a fashionista. Her flamboyant, massive African print turbans or head scarfs were always noticeable. Her sticking to the African prints stemmed from a simple ideal – remaining African.

“Women in the arts, don’t copy blindly what actresses in other cultures are doing. Stay African. That’s what makes African women live longer, look better. An African woman is beautiful at all ages,” she’d say about her fashion.

Far from that, she was vocal and a champion of women and child rights. Manduli was the first Kenyan woman to participate in the East African Safari rally in 1974 and 1975.

“The safari was hectic, it was beautiful, the most exciting thing I’ve ever done in my life. I was the driver, I am always the driver. It’s just that I’m always the driver in any situation. We did not finish but managed two legs,” she once told the Nation in an interview.

Manduli also served in various government appointments, including boards on governance and women issues.

Most notable ones include the National Council of Non-Governmental Organisations, the International Council of Women’s Council representative to the United Nations Environment Programme, and Habitat among others.

Mourning her death, Kenya’s Head of State, President Uhuru Kenyatta said that the late Orie Rogo Manduli was a woman of many firsts who never shied away from exploring new horizons.

“She took up and excelled in motorsports at a time when many African women would never have dared thereby opening up the sport to women drivers in later years. At the tender age of 16 years, while still in secondary school, Ms. Manduli won the Miss Kenya beauty pageant. She was simply a phenomenal and standout woman trailblazer,” the President said.

Manduli was vocal in the political and entertainment scene until 2017 when she took a back seat, only showing up on television interviews, the last being on JKL with Jeff Koinange.

Kenyans have come together to express their condolences and wishing the family well. And we, at Soko Directory, join in the mourning and celebrating the passing of such a great icon. May her family find strength and peace during this trying times. Fare thee well, Orie Rogo Manduli.