Raila Odinga’s final rites: Funeral like no other

For Mr Odinga, this was a continuation of top military honours only comparable to that of a former of Head of State: a flag-draped casket to signify a state burial, military pallbearers, body carried using the military gun carriage, a body lying in State in Parliament, and a gun salute expected to be conducted at the burial site today.

Only four other people have received such honours before — Presidents Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel arap Moi, and Mwai Kibaki; as well as Gen Francis Ogolla, who died in office as the Chief of Defence Forces in 20124.

Michael Kijana Wamalwa, who died while serving as vice-president in 2003, had his body lay in State in Parliament, but did not have the other military honours, including the gun carriage or salute.

Yesterday, the lakeside city of Kisumu was sombre. Kisumu was mourning its gallant son, who came back home on a military aircraft, not as the country’s president, but for the final interment of his remains.

The previous night, the city did not go to bed. Locals held candle-lit vigils on major streets and nightclubs.

And when the sun rose early Saturday, locals poured into the streets; some marched to the airport while others charged towards Jomo Kenyatta Sports Ground amid ensuing confusion on whether there was to be a procession from the airport to the stadium.

Raw emotions

The 30,000-capacity stadium turned into a sea of humanity when the body was airlifted from the airport for public view. Thousands others were locked outside the facility as they waited for their turn to view Mr Odinga’s body.

There was a display of raw emotions as locals wailed, some rolling on the ground while mourning the man they have known as their political kingpin for close to three decades.

The sheer numbers at the stadium forced the security team to drop the initial plan of holding a procession to Bondo. Instead, Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo announced that the body would be airlifted.

“From Mamboleo, the body of Raila will be flown to Bondo. This is because by the time the viewing will end, it will be a bit late,” said Dr Omollo.

Mr Odinga’s funeral became a cocktail of Luo customs, military traditions, demands of his political followers and the dictates of the Anglican Church.

Bishop David Kodia of the Anglican Church of Kenya Diocese of Bondo told Nation that today’s funeral service will be a church affair.

“It is going to be a full Christian burial. The others can perform all their rituals earlier before the church takes over the programme. When we do, the church takes precedence,” said Bishop Kodia.

Overnight stay

The cleric, however, stated that there are traditions that are not harmful that the church can allow. “There are some things that are part of us and cannot harm us. So, it is allowed. For instance, the overnight stay of the deceased’s body in his or her home is not harmful or retrogressive,” said the bishop.

“We should respect decisions Mr Odinga made before he died, like working with the President,” said Bishop Kodia.

The preservation of the traditions and customs of the Luo community has long been a central part of Mr Odinga’s life. Yet in his death, some of the age-old cultural practices that govern the passing and burial of elders and prominent individuals may not be observed to the letter - while others, out of reverence, must be.

In his later years, Mr Odinga was vocal in advocating for the reform of certain cultural practices. He criticised protracted mourning periods, lavish funerals and the custom of sons leaving their father’s homesteads to establish new homes, known locally as goyo dala. His call was for a more dignified and modest way of honouring the departed.

In Luo culture, the passing of a person, particularly one who dies away from home, is not traditionally announced through modern means like telephones.

A family member, typically the wife in the case of a man, would travel home to break the news in person, through a ritual known variously as Tero Ywak, Golo Ywak, or Muocho Ywak, depending on the region in Nyanza.

Cries of grief

 According to Mzee Onyango Radiel, a former councillor and long-time aide to Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, custom dictates that the bearer of such news should ideally be the deceased’s spouse or eldest son. In earlier times, this ritual served as the official communication of death in the absence of telecommunication.

“If tradition were to be strictly followed, Ida Odinga would have arrived at the homestead, wailing at the gate, before rushing inside. That cry alone would have alerted neighbours and relatives,” said Mr Radiel.

However, it was Mr Odinga’s elder brother, Siaya Senator Dr Oburu Oginga, who took on this solemn duty. At precisely 4pm on Thursday, he arrived at Opoda, where throngs of mourners met him with piercing cries of grief.

“I have come to officially inform you that Raila Odinga is no longer with us. We would have wished to mourn him for longer, but it was his wish that everything be concluded within 72 hours. I appeal to all of you to grant him a dignified farewell,” Dr Oginga appealed.

 Luo custom dictates that adults are typically buried in their ancestral homelands. Men are interred on the right side of the homestead, facing inward, while women are buried on the left. Unmarried daughters are often laid to rest near the fence, symbolising their unfulfilled journey to another home.

Burials are usually conducted at the homestead unless the deceased had migrated and established a recognised home elsewhere, in accordance with cultural expectations.

In Mr Odinga’s case, opinions have diverged on where he should be buried. Some elders and family members feel he should be interred at the family cemetery in Kangó ka Jaramogi in Nyamira, Bondo, alongside his father, Jaramogi, and his late son, Fidel Odinga.

Others argue he should be laid to rest at his Opoda Farm, where he had built his own homestead after departing from his father’s home.

Ultimately, it was confirmed by Dr Oginga that the body would be laid to rest beside his father’s grave.

“After the main funeral service on Sunday at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, the burial will take place at Nyamira,” said Dr Oginga.

Elders insisted that, given Mr Odinga’s towering stature, he deserved more than a simple grave. A mausoleum, they said, must be built in his honour, just as was done for Jaramogi.

“He even surpassed his father in terms of stature and national influence. His final resting place should reflect that,” remarked Mzee Olang’o Nyabola.

 Their wishes were respected. On Thursday evening, after extensive consultations between the family and the elders, it was agreed that a mausoleum would be constructed at the family cemetery, where Raila will rest beside his father.

Burial plots

In recent years, families in Western Kenya, particularly among the Luo, have increasingly embraced the idea of establishing private cemeteries within their homesteads. Though controversial, the practice is gaining traction.

Advocates argue that designated burial plots create order and conserve land, especially as traditional homesteads become crowded with graves. Customarily, the location of a burial site was based on the deceased’s gender and marital status, each with strict placement rules within the homestead. But as land becomes scarce and modern lifestyles evolve, families are opting for centralised burial sites.

“We are in a modern world, land is shrinking. Designated cemeteries help manage space better. We are encouraging this change,” said Mr Nyabola.

 One of the most dramatic and symbolic rituals in Luo burial customs is Tero Buru - the driving away of the spirit of death from the homestead. On Thursday morning, mourners forced their way into Mr Odinga’s Opoda home, defying security barriers, determined to perform the rite.

 They proceeded to do so, driving cattle, adorned in traditional attire, armed with spears and shields, chanting and invoking ancestral spirits in a deeply emotive ceremony.

 After the burial, another tradition requires close family members to remain seated outside the deceased’s home —four days for a man, three for a woman.

 Some customs, however, have faded. Among them is the shaving of hair by close male relatives, once a symbol of mourning and humility.

“I remember when Jaramogi died, both Raila and Oburu had their heads shaved clean to honour the culture. But that’s no longer done, Christianity has changed many of our ways,” noted Mzee Radiel.

Reported by Rushdie Oudia, Moses Nyamori and Justus Ochieng