The family of Kenya’s first vice president Jaramogi Oginga Odinga is in turmoil as the struggle to control one of Kenya’s largest political parties heats up. The death of Jaramogi’s son and political successor, Raila, has triggered a fierce succession war, within the party his son founded and increasingly, within the wider Odinga family.
A week in politics, as the adage goes, is a long time in politics. The family of Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, one of Kenya’s foremost political dynasties, is facing turbulence barely four months after the death of its prominent scion, the former prime minister Raila Odinga, the second eldest son of Jaramogi.
Two political rallies held in Nairobi’s Kibra suburb just a few days apart starkly highlighted the fractures in the Odinga family as it grapples with the political fallout from Raila’s demise last October. The family feud comes amidst a high-stakes duel for control of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party founded by Raila in 2005.
The key players: On the one hand is Oburu, Raila’s brother and the current ODM party leader; on the other is Winnie Odinga, Raila’s daughter and her brother, Raila Odinga Junior. In the background is Raila’s widow Ida Odinga. Raila’s sister Ruth Odinga, has also been vocal on the direction the party should take.
What has happened: On January 14, Oburu, held a rally in Kibera, a low-income settlement in Nairobi and a venue rich in symbolism, as the place where his late brother often held huge public rallies to assert political dominance of his Luo ethnic community and jokingly referred to his (Raila) political bedroom.
By holding a rally there, Oburu was signaling that he is now the undisputed Luo political kingpin and the Odinga family supremo. During the occasion, he was crowned the spokesman of the Luo community by Luo elders. Oburu was accompanied by ODM stalwarts including the party chairperson Gladys Wanga, who support the party’s political alliance with President William Ruto under the so-called Broad-based government.
On January 18, Winnie and her brother, Raila Odinga Junior, were at the same venue and in a show of defiance, declared that the party their father founded was headed in the wrong direction and demanded a party national delegates conference be held before the party can negotiate the 2027 elections with Mr. Ruto.
Oburu has categorically said that the party’s delegates meeting will be held only after the party concludes negotiations with potential partners, started with President Ruto’s UDA.
Why this matters: It is the second time that Winnie has come out boldly in public to challenge her uncle, Oburu, exposing the growing rift within the wider Odinga family over ODM’s leadership and strategy. At the party’s 20th anniversary celebrations in Mombasa in November, she denounced the party’s political partnership with the government, a move that jolted Kenya’s political landscape.
The party has revolved around the Odingas and loyalty to the party is seen as a show of loyalty to the family. To prevent a vacuum after Raila’s death, Oburu moved quickly to take over the party leader position and has even declared himself the party’s presidential candidate come 2027. (Raila was the party’s presidential candidate in the last four elections).
Although the 83-year-old Oburu, who is also a Senator, has a national profile and name recognition, he is struggling to fit in the shoes of his late brother, a larger-than-life statesman who commanded a huge following across Kenya and wielded immense power and influence in the country’s politics.
What next? The Odinga family is in unfamiliar territory and for the first time divided, a scenario that could severely weaken its clout on the national scene. Two factions are emerging, one supporting Oburu and the other Raila’s widow, Ida Odinga, an influential party figure in her own right. The strength of each faction will be tested at the party delegates conference, if convened.
Oburu and his faction are likely to dig in on the matter. He has even dared those who are not happy with the party to leave, a stance that puts him on a collision course with some members of the family, prominent among them Winnie.
And though Ida has been keen to play the role of a conciliator of the party’s feuding camps, it is unlikely that her daughter would take such a highly controversial stance without her (Ida) blessing.
Moreover, by appearing to support the embattled ODM secretary general Edwin Sifuna, who has openly opposed ODM’s continued association with the Ruto government, Ida could be signaling her position on where the party should be headed.