Raila Odinga lists two moments he was harshly booed and jeered
By Steve Ireri, September 22, 2025ODM leader Raila Odinga has reflected on his political journey by highlighting two of the moments he faced the loudest boos, saying they stand as proof that true leadership often demands making unpopular but necessary decisions.
Speaking during ODM’s PG meeting on Monday, September 22, 2025, he recalled first being heavily criticised when he supported the clearance of land for the construction of the Thika Superhighway and the Nairobi bypasses.
The decision, he recalled, triggered a public backlash and cast him against the people, yet the project is today celebrated as one of the most transformative infrastructure developments in the country.
“I have been there myself. I have been cheered and I have been booed. I was once set up against the people when I spoke about clearing the ground for the Thika Superhighway and the bypasses around Nairobi. Today, everybody claims credit for the Thika Superhighway and the bypasses,” he said.
The second incident, he narrated, came when he joined forces with KANU in pushing for the Constitution Review Commission.
Raila said that at the time, many of his colleagues in Parliament disowned him for the move, but the effort laid the foundation for the 2010 Constitution, which has since been hailed as one of the nation’s most significant reforms.
“My colleagues in Parliament once disowned me when, together with KANU, I championed the Constitution Review Commission that laid the foundation for what became the 2010 Constitution, and which everyone also claims credit for today,” Raila added.
Populist politics
The former prime minister further cautioned that current times demand firm and resolute leadership, consultations, and sobriety in decision-making.
He noted that politicians risk losing direction when they spend more time listening to their own voices or the cheers of crowds rather than focusing on their duty to lead.
“It will require firm and resolute leadership, consultations, more sobriety and a constant focus on the needs of the people. I mention sobriety because in times like these it is possible for politicians to spend more time listening to the echoes of their own voices and the cheers of the masses, and forget that we are leaders and we are supposed to be leading,” Raila stated.
He added that leaders must resist being swept up in competing campaigns of populism, reminding them that leadership often requires decisions that invite boos instead of applause. He said that while he has experienced both cheers and jeers in his career, what matters most is maintaining focus on the needs of the people.
“In times like these, it is possible to be lost in competing campaigns of populism and forget that leading means making decisions that may sometimes invite booing instead of cheers.”
Odinga also urged legislators not to feel powerless or defeated by populist pressure.
He stressed that leadership demands courage and clarity of purpose, warning that without sobriety, the pursuit of popularity could easily overshadow the responsibility of guiding the nation.
“So my appeal to you as we embark on some of the legislative agendas coming up is that you should never feel powerless or feel like giving up, because populists around you are seeking popularity at the expense of leadership.”