{"id":232458,"date":"2025-10-22T12:41:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T12:41:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/232458\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T12:41:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T12:41:07","slug":"the-kenyan-statesman-who-championed-competitive-politics-and-accountability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/232458\/","title":{"rendered":"the Kenyan statesman who championed competitive politics and accountability"},"content":{"rendered":"

Raila Amolo Odinga, who died<\/a> on 15 October 2025, aged 80, ran five times<\/a> for the Kenyan presidency but didn\u2019t win. Yet he became a statesman of enormous influence, whose political and humanitarian achievements surpassed those of many African heads of state. He will be remembered as one of the most important figures in the struggle for multiparty democracy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In this, he was like his father, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga \u2013 who was the country\u2019s first post-independence vice-president. Oginga was a patriot, a nationalist<\/a>, and one of a small number of Kenyans who were instrumental in the struggle against colonialism. In 1960, Oginga turned down an opportunistic offer from British colonialists to become Kenya\u2019s first prime minister. He argued that there could not be a meaningful transition to an independent Kenya while the popular Jomo Kenyatta<\/a> was still imprisoned.<\/p>\n

Odinga first captured national attention stage in 1982 when he was linked<\/a> to a failed coup plot by a group of air force<\/a> officers. From then on he was in and out of political detention and exile until 1992. He achieved much over the next three decades, but in my view, four things stand out in his rich political legacy:<\/p>\n

1. Strong belief in the power of the people<\/p>\n

His political career, which lasted over three decades, was driven by a strong belief in the ability of ordinary citizens to determine their own political and economic destiny.<\/p>\n

This belief was evidenced by his lifelong support for and defence of multiparty democracy. To this statesman, competitive politics represented the most effective way for ordinary Kenyans to participate in the governing of their country. It was the means by which poor rural farmers, and families eking out a living on the margins of rich industrial centres like Nairobi, could force their governors to be accountable to them and the constitution.<\/p>\n

Throughout his political career, Odinga exhibited trust and confidence in the ability of ordinary Kenyans to think for themselves. He extolled their capacity to choose their own leaders and to ensure that these leaders would not act only in their own self-interest.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s my argument that Odinga\u2019s political philosophy was shaped and informed by what he learned from his father\u2019s struggles and his own experiences with Kenya\u2019s authoritarian<\/a> political and opportunistic economic elites. Kenyans cannot and must not forget his eight years of imprisonment under the authoritarian regime of Daniel arap Moi (1982\u20131991); nor should they underestimate his support for the 2010 constitution<\/a>, which transformed Kenya into a modern democracy.<\/p>\n

2. Entrenching competitive politics<\/p>\n

The early 1990s were a time of turmoil<\/a>, not just in Kenya. Throughout Africa many grassroots movements were fighting for better governance. These included, among others, the anti-apartheid movement<\/a> in South Africa and the struggle against Nigeria\u2019s brutal military dictatorship<\/a>. In Kenya, a political movement \u2013 in which Odinga would play no small part \u2013 was underway to end decades of a repressive single-party system.<\/p>\n

Odinga challenged one-party rule<\/a> and fought for Kenya\u2019s transition to a competitive political system. He saw this as a system in which politicians regularly renew the mandate granted them through free, credible and competitive elections. Through this process, Kenyans have been able to exercise their right to hold their leaders accountable.<\/p>\n

The battle was won when arap Moi agreed to the first multi-party election<\/a> in 1992. But the broader war for democratic governance, political accountability and respect for human rights had only begun. In this, Odinga would play an even bigger part.<\/p>\n

It is no accident that he was vilified<\/a> by a political elite that saw him as an agitator and threat to their political fortunes. Yet, it was that threatening political personality that contributed to the modernisation of political economy in Kenya and the rise of the country as a beacon of democracy in Africa.<\/p>\n

3. A new constitution, less political conflict<\/p>\n

The brutality that Odinga suffered under the Moi dictatorship<\/a> shaped his belief in competitive politics, respect for human rights and passion for accountable governance.<\/p>\n

This passion placed him at the centre<\/a> of Kenya\u2019s quest for a new constitution. The quest began in the mid-2000s<\/a> but crystallised after the 2007-8 post-election violence<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Among other progressive changes, Kenya\u2019s 2010 constitution introduced an independent judiciary. Courts were empowered to peacefully resolve conflicts, including those arising from contested elections. Odinga\u2019s several petitions to the Supreme Court alleging election malpractices have, in my opinion, helped improve, entrench<\/a> and deepen democracy in the country.<\/p>\n

The petitions also gave the judiciary the opportunity to affirm and enhance its independence<\/a>. Thanks to the reforms made to the independent electoral commission, the 2022 elections were transparent, peaceful<\/a> and credible. The results were transmitted in record time<\/a>. The changes in the electoral system made in response to the court\u2019s ruling enhanced the courts\u2019 role in the peaceful resolution of conflict in a democracy. <\/p>\n

4. Spirit of political dialogue<\/p>\n

Odinga spent more than three decades fighting to bring democracy, pluralism, social justice and peaceful coexistence to a country torn apart by violent ethnic rivalries for scarce resources. He taught Kenyans that, through dialogue and the help of democratic institutions, they could coexist peacefully. They could create a society in which governance and economic development would be people-centred<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Odinga fully understood the nature of democratic competition and peaceful coexistence. Even as a fierce political competitor, Odinga was always willing to seek compromise with his rivals in order to advance the interests of Kenya and Kenyans. This is seen in his decision to shake<\/a> Kenyatta\u2019s hand in the aftermath of the 2017 election. <\/p>\n

Most recently, he surprised Kenyans by seeking reconciliation with President William Ruto<\/a> after the competitive 2022 election. Observers believe this illustrates Odinga\u2019s political philosophy: in politics, a door<\/a> never shuts completely.<\/p>\n

In a nutshell<\/p>\n

Odinga contributed significantly to Kenya\u2019s transformation into a modern democratic state. He was also one of Africa\u2019s most important transformative leaders. A pan-Africanist who saw continental integration as an achievable goal, Odinga believed strongly in self-reliance and the need for Africans to manage their own affairs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Raila Amolo Odinga, who died on 15 October 2025, aged 80, ran five times for the Kenyan presidency…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":232459,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[64,63,137,490],"class_list":["post-232458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-health","tag-medication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232458","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232458"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232458\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}