Background
He was born on May 25, 1925, at Kericho in the Kipsigis tribe.
He was born on May 25, 1925, at Kericho in the Kipsigis tribe.
Educated at Alliance High School and Makerere University College. In 1955 he went fora one-year course in Public and Social Administration at South Devon Technical College, Anally getting a BA with honours after a four-year correspondence course with the University of South Africa.
He worked as a social welfare officer in Kipsigis from 1950 to 1957 and then as a community development officer in the Nandi district. He was returned unopposed to the Kenya Legco as member for Bureti in February 1958. In 1960 he was a founder member of the Kenya African Democratic Union, set up at the time by the smaller tribes which feared Kikuyu-Luo domination. He was re-elected to Parliament in the February 1961 elections and was made Minister of Lands and Settlement in the minority KADU government. In November 1964, on the dissolution of KADU, he courageously decided to go back to the electorate and seek a fresh mandate. But he was defeated in the December 1964 elections. He maintained his parliamentary contacts and when Oginga Odinga formed his Kenya People’s Union, Towett advised Tom Mboya to introduce a bill stating that members who resign from their party must seek re-election. This bill was passed and became known as “Towett’s law’’ and led to the defeat of the KPU in the 1966 elections.
Meanwhile Towett concentrated on non-political activities as Chairman of the Kenya Dairy Board 1964-8, Chairman of the Kenya National Library Board until December 1969, also president of the Kenya National Union of Co-operatives, where he feels he has made a major contribution for his country. He holds that co-operatives will be the salvation of the poorer areas in Kenya. He won his Bureti seat back in December 1969 and was immediately appointed to Kenyatta’s cabinet as Minister for Education.