Former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga dies at 80.2 days ago7 min read4 comments

The political landscape of Kenya, and indeed all of Africa, has been irrevocably altered with the heartbreaking confirmation from family sources to the BBC that former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has passed away at the age of 80. He died on Wednesday, not in his homeland, but while receiving medical treatment at a hospital in India, a detail that adds a layer of profound sorrow to an already monumental loss.For millions who saw him as a relentless champion for democracy, 'Baba' was more than a politician; he was a living embodiment of Kenya's turbulent struggle for multi-party politics and a more equitable society. His passing is not merely the end of a life but the closing of a definitive chapter in post-colonial African history.Born into political royalty as the son of Kenya's first vice-president, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Raila's destiny was intertwined with that of his nation from the outset. His journey was one of immense sacrifice and resilience, marked by years of detention and imprisonment under the Daniel arap Moi regime, where he was held as a political prisoner without trial.These years of confinement did not break him; they forged the steelier, more determined leader who would later become a central figure in the fight for the new constitution and a two-time Prime Minister. His famous handshake with former rival Uhuru Kenyatta in 2018, which calmed a nation fraught with electoral violence, stands as a testament to his evolving legacy from fiery opposition stalwart to a unifying statesman seeking peace.Yet, his story is also one of what might have been, having contested and narrowly lost several presidential elections, each outcome sparking waves of both protest and introspection across the country. The news of his death in a foreign hospital will send shockwaves from the bustling streets of Nairobi to the halls of power in Washington and London, where he was both a respected and sometimes contentious figure.Analysts are now left to ponder the immense vacuum his absence creates within his Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and the broader opposition, with the fragile political equilibrium in East Africa's economic hub now facing its most severe test. The immediate question on every observer's mind is what comes next for Kenya—who can possibly fill the void left by a man who was both a kingmaker and a perpetual claimant to the throne? The grief is palpable, a raw, emotional wound for a generation that witnessed his unwavering fight, a fight that now, quietly, has come to an end in a hospital room far from the red soil he fought so hard for.