Kenya’s Veteran Opposition Leader Raila Odinga Dies in India at 80

GOOBJOOG NEWS | NAIROBI: Kenya’s longtime opposition leader and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has died at the age of 80 while undergoing treatment in southern India, officials and family sources said on Wednesday.

A source in Odinga’s office said he died earlier in the day but gave no further details. Indian authorities in Kerala state said Odinga suffered a cardiac arrest while receiving Ayurvedic treatment at a wellness centre in the town of Koothattukulam, about 50 kilometres from Kochi.

“He collapsed during a morning walk and was rushed to a private hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:52 a.m.,” a hospital spokesman said. His body is being held at the facility pending arrangements by Kenyan officials, police added.

Odinga, son of the late independence hero and former vice president Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, was one of East Africa’s most influential political figures. Over a career spanning five decades, he served as Kenya’s Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013, following a power-sharing deal that ended post-election violence in 2007.

A veteran campaigner for democracy, Odinga played a pivotal role in the reintroduction of multiparty politics in 1991 and was a key proponent of Kenya’s 2010 constitution, which devolved power and strengthened checks on the presidency.

Despite losing five presidential bids, Odinga’s political influence remained strong. His last contest in 2022 against current President William Ruto was narrowly lost, though he continued to command a loyal following across the country.

Reactions to his death began pouring in from across Africa and the diaspora, with leaders describing him as a “pillar of reform” and “a steadfast voice for justice.”

Funeral arrangements were yet to be announced, but the Kenyan government is expected to coordinate the repatriation of his body in the coming days.