orig. Thomas Joseph Mboya
born Aug. 15, 1930, Kilima Mbogo, near Nairobi, Kenya
died July 5, 1969, Nairobi
Kenyan political leader.
During the Mau Mau rebellion (1952–56) and the period leading up to Kenyan independence (1963), the Oxford-educated Mboya headed the Kenya Federation of Labour. In 1960 he helped found the dominant Kenyan African National Union Party (KANU). After independence he served in top administrative posts in Kikuyu and other ethnic groups, especially Mboya's own Luo .