- Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) secretary general Edwin Sifuna spoke about the death of ODM leader Raila Odinga
- Speaking at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Sifuna gave two reasons why ODM delayed announcing Raila’s death.
- Despite the news spreading on social media, the news was made public by President William Ruto later in the day
Nairobi – Secretary General of the ODM party Edwin Sifuna has spoken about the delay in announcing the death of former prime minister Raila Odinga.
Source: Facebook
The former prime minister passed away on Wednesday, October 15, in India, where he was undergoing treatment.
What did Edwin Sifuna say about the death of Raila Odinga?
As the news of Raila’s passing spread across the country, his party took several hours before confirming the sad news.
Speaking at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Sifuna apologized to the public and Orange Party members for the delay in delivering the sad news.
“I want to take this opportunity to say sorry to all the ODM fraternity and the family of the late Raila Odinga. I want to apologize to ODM members and the whole country in general for being late this morning because this news was distributed by other media before we did so,” Sifuna said.
Sifuna, who was overcome with emotion, revealed that the party had to wait for the President William Ruto to announce officially.
Why was ODM late in announcing the death of Raila Odinga?
The Nairobi senator went on to say that they had to wait for Siaya senator Oburu Oginga, who was from a rural area, to arrive in the city before announcing Raila’s death to the public.
“We had to wait for the head of the country to make the official announcement because Raila Odinga was not only the leader of ODM, he was a politician and an African politician. His elder brother Oburu Odinga was a man from the countryside and we had to wait for him to come to Nairobi for the announcement to be made,” ODM SG said.
In addition, the ODM SG asked the members of the party to maintain peace and not cause chaos by attacking businessmen during mourning.
“If you talk to many ODM leaders and those who know the old man, some of us spoke to him until yesterday and he was fine so we did not expect this. We also want to ask that everyone maintain peace. You should ask yourself before doing whatever the old man would want, what would make him smile and be proud of you at this particular time. There is no reason to cause any violence, disrupt business or disturb the old man.” he added.
What you need to know about Raila Odinga
Former president Uhuru Kenyatta wrote a touching message, mourning the ODM leader
Mombasa Governor Abdullswamad Sherrif Nassir shared his last conversation with the ODM leader Raila Odinga
President William Ruto announced seven days of mourning for the former prime minister
Will Raila be given a state funeral?
At the same time, President Ruto announced that the former prime minister will be given a state funeral.
During his speech at the State House in Nairobi, the president announced that Raila would be given a national funeral with full military honours.
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