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By Babafemi A. Badejo, PhD
Author, “Raila Odinga: An Enigma successful Kenyan Politics”
It’s a shame that we each indispensable bow out. Raila’s crook came connected October 15, 2025, successful India, acold distant from Bondo, Kisumu, Nairobi, oregon adjacent Addis Ababa, Africa’s governmental superior seeking aesculapian enactment that mismanaged Africa could not provide. The departure of Raila Amolo Odinga from the African signifier closes a defining epoch for the African continent. The Kenyan “Enigma” (locally converted to “Engima”), stood tall, astatine times alone, but with a sustained loyal assemblage successful his strive for utmost state successful Kenya and beyond. For him, antiauthoritarian conflict indispensable genuinely present to the “Wananchi”, that is, governance is for the people. His sanction became a metaphor for courageousness which I depicted arsenic lionic, resilience, and the eternal pursuit of justice. Yet down the fable was a antheral of humour, and humility, whose relationship I was privileged to share. That relationship started erstwhile I approached him to enactment state for Olusegun Obasanjo erstwhile the General and aboriginal President was successful the Sani Abacha gulag. As astatine then, helium had not known Obasanjo beyond being successful the assemblage of an Obasanjo led gathering connected a rounded improvement for Africa successful Kampala.
Origins of a Relentless Spirit
Raila Odinga was calved successful January 1945 into 1 of the families that personified Kenya’s liberation heritage. His father, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, was a cardinal designer of Kenya’s independency and the nation’s archetypal Vice President. Jaramogi had written Not Yet Uhuru successful the quest for utmost state successful Africa. That lineage bestowed some inspiration and burden—the anticipation to service and the inevitability of struggle with power. Raila lived up to and went beyond expectation.
Educated successful East Germany during the 1960s, Raila absorbed a disciplined enactment ethic and a content successful societal equity that would aboriginal pass his governmental philosophy. Trained arsenic an engineer, helium entered nationalist beingness not arsenic a vocation person but arsenic a technocrat who understood that structures—whether of alloy oregon of governance—must remainder connected integrity if they are to endure.
The events of 1982, pursuing the failed coup against President Moi, changed his destiny. Accused of complicity, helium spent astir a decennary successful detention without trial. Those acheronian years produced neither bitterness nor surrender. They refined his resoluteness and talented Kenya a person who understood the terms of state successful idiosyncratic terms.
The Long March Toward Democracy
Raila’s merchandise coincided with Africa’s broader question of antiauthoritarian reawakening. In the aboriginal 1990s, helium emerged arsenic a main designer of Kenya’s multiparty movement, confronting entrenched authoritarianism with uncommon fortitude. When the one-party strategy crumbled, it was owed successful nary tiny measurement to his agitation, persistence, and charisma.
From that constituent forward, helium became an indispensable changeless successful Kenya’s governmental evolution—whether successful Parliament representing the Kibera slum of Nairobi, successful the Cabinet, oregon connected the run trail. His imprint connected law betterment culminated successful the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, which redefined powerfulness done devolution and expanded national rights. That achievement, much than immoderate election, represents his enduring organization legacy. He contested the presidency 5 times and mislaid but utilized an juncture to amusement that Judges successful Africa could beryllium fearless by his starring the annulment of the electronically rigged predetermination by an incumbent, starring to a re-run that helium chose to enactment distant from arsenic each indications showed that determination would beryllium a fraudulent re-run. In the 2017 Kenyan Election, I joined my dependable to the plea for peace, urging present precocious Raila and his supporters and Uhuru Kenyatta connected the different broadside to tread cautiously.
Conversations Beyond Politics
My narration with Raila grew from scholarly enquiry into friendship. Writing Raila Odinga: An Enigma successful Kenyan Politics required rigorous detachment. The engagement with my taxable gradually became dialog betwixt 2 Africans preoccupied with the aforesaid question: How tin powerfulness beryllium made to service alternatively than subdue our people? This intelligence task alongside my vocation arsenic an planetary servant with the United Nations made Kenya go my 2nd home.
Raila approached critique with curiosity alternatively than defensiveness. When helium work drafts that scrutinized his tactical choices, helium laughed mildly and said, “Badejo, the way of alteration is ne'er straight; you crook truthful the histrion does not break.” That blend of self-awareness and pragmatism defined him. He ne'er saw disagreement arsenic disloyalty. To him, enquiry was respect.
Our conversations ranged from constitutionalism to the science of leadership. ...
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