Kiraitu Murungi mourns Raila as Kenya’s most transformative leader
By Dorcas Mbatia, October 15, 2025Veteran politician and former Meru Governor Kiraitu Murungi has mourned the passing of Raila Amolo Odinga, describing him as Kenya’s most illustrious, progressive and transformative leader.
Kiraitu, who said he worked with the former prime minister for over four decades, on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, conveyed his condolences to Mama Ida Odinga, the family and the nation as a whole, expressing profound sorrow and a sense of national loss.
Also watch: Raila’s daring political moments: From resigning as an MP to swearing in as people’s presidentD
“The cruel hand of death has robbed Kenya of its most progressive and transformative leader. I have known Raila for the last forty years as his lawyer during his detention, a colleague in Parliament, a Cabinet Minister and as Prime Minister.”
He added that from the struggle for Kenya’s second liberation in the 1990s to the campaigns for the 2010 Constitution and the controversial Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), Kiraitu reflected on Raila’s long and winding political journey, a path he noted was marked by immense personal sacrifice, unwavering resilience and undying commitment to the ideals of democracy.
“Raila’s political journey has been a pilgrimage of pain, trials, triumphs, and tribulations. It was a journey often interrupted and frustrated, but for Raila, it was never one to be abandoned,” he said.
Also watch: Trans Nzoia Governor Natembeya pays tribute to Raila Odinga, urges calm during mourning period
Describing Odinga’s legacy as unmatched in Kenya’s opposition history, Kiraitu regretted that the current opposition is marred only by empty rhetoric and noise.
“Raila’s courage, creativity and resilience make lilliputians of today’s opposition compared to our today opposition that remains stuck in a shallow game of the angry and the disillusioned,” noted the former cabinet secretary.
While speaking to our writer, Kiraitu further paid tribute to Odinga as a patriot who relentlessly fought against dictatorship, corruption and ethnic divisions to have a united, democratic, and prosperous Kenya.
“He has immortalised himself in our minds and hearts. Raila will always be remembered and celebrated as a hero of democracy. He will always inspire Kenyans in their march towards a united, progressive, and democratic future,” he added.