President William Ruto has announced that the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga will be accorded a state funeral.

Speaking from State House on Wednesday, October 15, Ruto said the government, in consultation with the Odinga family, has constituted a committee to oversee the funeral arrangements. 

The team will be co-chaired by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and Raila’s brother, Siaya Senator Oburu Odinga.

“Our former Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, shall be accorded a state funeral. In consultation with the family, a committee to be co-chaired by the Deputy President Professor Kithure Kindiki and the Siaya Senator Oburu Odinga has been set up to coordinate the funeral arrangements,” he said.

Ruto also revealed that the Government of India has stepped in to assist with the repatriation of Raila’s remains, following a formal request from Kenya.

“At the same time, the Government of India, at the request of the Government of Kenya, has offered to facilitate the repatriation of the remains of our former Prime Minister,” he added.

Raila further stated that a high-level delegation, led by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, will travel to India immediately to coordinate the process.

“Consequently, a delegation comprising government officials and family members, led by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, is leaving immediately for India to facilitate proper organisation in the repatriation of the remains of our brother,” he further said.

Other members of the delegation are Mama Ida, Cabinet Secretaries Kipchumba Murkomen (Interior) and Hassan Joho (Mining), National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wa, Minority Leader Junet Mohamed, and family members, Jaoko Oburu Odinga, Kevin Opiyo Oginga, among others.

“Fellow patriots, we have lost a beacon of courage, a tower of principle, and a father of our democracy. Let us come together, as he always urged us to do, not as rivals, but as brothers and sisters bound by a shared destiny,” he added.

Meanwhile, President William Ruto declared seven days of national mourning following Raila’s death.

According to the Head of State, during this period, all flags will fly at half-mast at the State House and all Kenyan diplomatic posts around the world.

“In honor of the right honorable Raila Odinga and his immense contribution to the nation of Kenya, I have declared a 7-day period of mourning across Kenya during which the national flag shall fly at half-mast across the nation and in our missions abroad,” he said.

Ruto also revealed that he has postponed all his public engagements for the coming days.

“As a mark of respect, I have postponed all my public engagements for the coming days, and I ask all the other public servants and leaders to do the same so we can join the country in mourning,” he added.

Raila passed away on Wednesday morning at the age of 80 at a facility in Kochi, India.

He reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest during a morning walk at an Ayurvedic treatment facility and later pronounced dead.

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has joined Kenyans in mourning the late ODM leader Raila Odinga, describing him as a towering figure in Kenya’s political and democratic journey.

In his message of condolence on Wednesday, October 15, Gachagua expressed his sympathy to Raila’s family, recalling the contribution the late leader made to the country’s political landscape.

He hailed Raila as a giant of democracy and a hero whose legacy will remain etched in Africa’s political history.

“Baba Raila Odinga, may you rest well. To the family, your spouse Mama Ida Odinga and your children, my family and I join you in prayer during this difficult moment. My deepest sympathies to you and to the people of the Republic of Kenya.

“The enigma Baba, the father of our democracy and a formidable hero of Kenya’s 2nd liberation, you stood tall and strong in intellect, knowledge and quest for democracy. You faced brutal regimes’ brutality, you were tortured, jailed, abducted and detained severally for Kenya. When the history of Africa’s Pan-Africanism is written, your chapter as the indefatigable lion of Africa will attract many readers,” he said.

Gachagua reflected on Raila’s decades-long public service career, acknowledging his commitment and impact across various roles.

“You dedicated your life in the service of humanity: as a political activist, a Civil Servant, a University Lecturer, an MP, a Party Leader, a Cabinet Minister, a Prime Minister and many other fronts. On all these, your trail of success and impact remains indelible,” he added.

Gachagua further noted that Raila’s voice and resilience would forever be remembered in the country’s fight for democracy and constitutional reform.

“Kenyans will not only remember your craft in resilience, persistence and democratic values days on but also your voice during difficult moments. It will be remembered that you were at the forefront in the fight for Kenya’s democracy and liberation of Kenya on many firsts. 

“Most profoundly, Kenya’s multiparty democracy and the Constitution of Kenya 2010, a race you strongly stood in for and we the people of Kenya shall never forget,” he further said.

Despite their political differences, Gachagua praised Raila’s ability to build and maintain a strong political movement over the years.

He concluded his tribute by honouring Raila as a national icon whose influence transcended politics.

“Much as we have never been on the same political side, I have had a strong admiration of Raila Odinga’s art of forming and sustaining a strong political party that survived 4 general elections. I remain amazed by his choice of quality legislators to fly the party flag and eloquently articulate party policies and the people they represented.

“You are a hero celebrated home and away; you have not gone Raila Odinga, you have just faded away. Rest in peace Baba and may perpetual light shine upon you forever,” he concluded.

Kenya’s former Vice President, Kalonzo Musyoka, has paid tribute to the late Raila Odinga, describing him as “a force of nature” and “the Champion of the Second Political Liberation.”

Raila Odinga, 80, and also former Kenya’s Prime Minister, died on Wednesday morning while undergoing treatment at an Ayurvedic hospital in Kochi, Kerala, India.

Medical reports indicated he suffered a cardiac arrest during a morning walk and was pronounced dead shortly after 9 a.m.

In a statement released on Wednesday morning, Kalonzo said he received the news of Odinga’s death upon his arrival at Heathrow International Airport in London, where he is on a scheduled 10-day programme.

“I received the devastating news of the death of the Second Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya and my dear brother, Rt Hon Raila Amolo Odinga this morning, upon my arrival at Heathrow International Airport, London, United Kingdom where I am on a scheduled 10-day programme,” Kalonzo said.

Musyoka described Odinga, fondly known as Baba, as a resilient and selfless leader who endured immense suffering in his fight for democracy.

“Baba was the longest suffering political detainee in Kenya. At the heart of the struggle for multipartyism, Raila’s body bore the scars of the slings and arrows, bullets and batons, that no man or woman should ever endure,” he said.

“Yet, at each point of release from the detention cells and torture chambers, he would raise his arms up to the heavens, his fist clenched in determination; resolved that the tears and painful scars he personally suffered would yield to democracy and freedom for his beloved Kenya. That is why we call him the Champion of the Second Political Liberation.”

Musyoka praised Odinga’s instrumental role in shaping Kenya’s democracy, particularly during the 2010 Constitution reforms that devolved power from what he described as “an imperial presidency to a people’s centred constitutional order.”

“From the Opposition benches to the Government side as Prime Minister, to August 27, 2010, the day our New Constitution was promulgated, my brother Raila played an instrumental and integral role in devolving power from an imperial presidency to a people’s centred constitutional order. For that, we owe him our immense gratitude,” he said.

Kalonzo also reflected on their political partnership, noting that they had worked together closely as running mates in both the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) and the National Super Alliance (NASA), as well as partners in the Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition.

“We learnt a lot from each other, and shared a lot of pain together,” he said.

He extended his condolences to Odinga’s widow, Mama Ida Odinga, and their children, saying:

“To Mama Ida, and the entire family, in particular Rosemary, Raila Junior and Winnie, as much as I cannot imagine the shock and the heartbreak that you are currently going through, I want you to know that my family and I stand in solidarity with you.”

Kalonzo described Odinga as “the President who won but was never declared and sworn into office,” saying his death was “not only a loss to his family and country, but also to the entire African continent.”

“I will miss my brother and friend dearly,” he added. “May God rest the soul of Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga in everlasting peace.”

Odinga served as Kenya’s second Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013 under the Grand Coalition Government formed after the 2007 post-election crisis.

Born in 1945, Odinga was the son of Kenya’s first Vice President, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. A lifelong advocate for democracy and reform, he was a central figure in Kenya’s fight for multiparty politics in the 1990s.

His party, Azimio la Umoja, became a key player in opposition politics, promoting national unity and social justice.