Former President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday lightened the sombre mood at Nyayo Stadium as he recalled the humorous and reflective moments he once shared with the late Raila Odinga even as he mourned him as a brother, friend, and patriot.
Uhuru said he and Raila often spent evenings reflecting on life and the country’s future, sometimes joking about what Kenya’s founding fathers Jomo Kenyatta and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga might be discussing in the afterlife.
“Sometimes after work, we would sit together, talking and laughing,” Uhuru said. “I once asked him — those old men who died before us, Jaramogi and Jomo when they sit, what do they discuss? I said they must talk about politics just like us.”
Pausing, he added with a soft chuckle:
“But now, Raila, you’ve left and you’re talking with them. It’s not that I’m in a hurry to come where you are but I still want to be around.”
The crowd responded with laughter and applause before falling back into silence as Uhuru’s tone turned deeply emotional.
“My heart is heavy, and my spirit is burdened with a grief that is both profound and deeply personal,” he said.
“The news of Raila’s passing has left a silence that echoes across our nation a silence where once there was a voice of thunder and conviction.”
Uhuru described Raila as a man who shaped Kenya’s political story not just as a rival, but as a partner in nation-building.
“Raila and I were navigators on opposing currents, charting different courses for the nation we both loved,” he said. “At some point along that journey, we became political opponents. The competition was tough, but from it came respect and a shared patriotism.”
He said the Handshake between them in 2018 marked the true measure of Raila’s statesmanship.
“He made you sharpen your ideas, defend your positions, and think beyond yourself,” Uhuru said. “He loved Kenya more than anything else he was not tribal, and he always stood for unity, peace, and justice.”
The former president urged Kenyans to protect Raila’s legacy of democracy, integrity, and peace.
“As we bid him farewell, let’s promise to ensure that the democracy and freedoms Raila fought for will never be wiped away,” he said. “We will not allow this country to go backwards that is what Raila would have wanted.”
Uhuru closed his tribute by thanking Mama Ida Odinga and the Odinga family for sharing Raila with the nation.
“I have come to mourn a friend and a brother,” he said. “Even in our sadness, let’s take the opportunity to appreciate Mama Ida and the family. To Kenyans, I say thank you for giving us Raila.”
