Jaramogi Clan Tells Raila Jr, Winnie Against Disrespecting Their Uncle Oburu, Warns of Curses

The powerful Kawuor clan has issued a stern warning to Raila Odinga’s children, Winnie and Raila Junior, demanding they cease what elders termed as blatant disrespect toward their uncle, Senator Oburu Oginga, or risk facing traditional curses that have historically befallen those who defy family hierarchy.

In a dramatic intervention that has sent shockwaves through Kenyan political circles, senior members of the clan that produced independence hero Jaramogi Oginga Odinga gathered at the iconic Kang’o Ka Jaramogi homestead in Bondo on Tuesday to publicly reprimand the younger Odingas for their perceived insubordination.

William Ojonyo, Jaramogi’s nephew and a respected voice within the clan, delivered the explosive message with the weight of ancestral authority behind him. The altercation involving Winnie and Raila Junior should not happen again. We call on all children and grandchildren to respect the eldest son of Jaramogi. This is not just about politics. It is about our culture, our traditions, and the natural order that has governed our family for generations.

The clan’s fury was triggered by parallel political rallies held last weekend, a spectacle that laid bare the deepening fault lines within the once-impregnable Odinga political dynasty.

Dr. Oburu Oginga.

While Oburu, now ODM party leader, addressed supporters in Kakamega as part of a Western Kenya tour, his niece Winnie and nephew Raila Junior held their own rally at Kamukunji grounds in Nairobi, openly challenging his leadership.

Winnie, an East African Legislative Assembly MP, threw caution to the wind during her fiery Kamukunji address. “We were passengers, and Baba was our driver. Then, one day, he was gone. Out of nowhere, those who were near him jumped to the steering wheel. They are pushing us like luggage,” she declared to thunderous applause from a youthful crowd that included Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino.

Her words, widely interpreted as a direct attack on Oburu, have now placed her and her brother in direct conflict with clan elders who view such public confrontation as a grave violation of Luo customs that demand deference to elder male relatives, particularly the firstborn son of a patriarch like Jaramogi.

Winnie, Raila Odinga Junior during a recent rally in Kibera.

Sources within the clan say that behind closed doors, discussions have gone beyond mere political disagreements.

There are serious conversations about invoking traditional mechanisms to restore order.

“In our culture, when younger family members openly disrespect their elders, especially the firstborn male, there are consequences. The spirits of our ancestors do not take such things lightly,” one elder who requested anonymity revealed.

Cardinal John Awala, speaking at the Kisumu gathering, adopted a more conciliatory tone but the message remained unmistakable. “We invite our kin, Honorable Winnie Odinga and Raila Junior, to come share their concerns within the larger family fold. We are ready to listen. But let it be clear, the eldest son of Jaramogi commands respect. This is not negotiable.”

The public rebuke comes at a time when ODM, the party that Raila Odinga built into a national political force over two decades, faces its most serious existential crisis.

With Raila’s sudden death creating a leadership vacuum, battle lines have been drawn between Oburu’s old guard, which includes party Chairperson Gladys Wanga and Director of Elections Junet Mohammed, and a younger, more militant faction rallying behind Winnie Odinga.

The generational clash has been further complicated by ideological differences over President William Ruto’s government.

Oburu has signaled openness to supporting Ruto’s 2027 re-election bid, a position that has horrified party purists who see it as a betrayal of ODM’s opposition DNA.

Sifuna and Babu Owino have emerged as fierce critics of what they term a sellout to the government.

Babu Owino, never one to mince words, has publicly questioned Oburu’s suitability to lead the party, using biblical analogies to make his point. “What kind of general do we need after Baba? Our Moses is gone, and we need a Joshua who is younger than Moses, with vim, vigor, courage and temerity to lead the people Baba left to Canaan. The current ODM does not reflect what Baba stood for.”

Such rhetoric has only deepened the clan’s concerns. Political commentator Barrack Muluka observed that the crisis mirrors the chaos that consumed Ford Kenya in 1994 following Jaramogi’s death, when Raila himself battled Kijana Wamalwa for party control.

“History is repeating itself, but this time Raila’s own children are on the opposite side of the generational divide,” Muluka noted.

Interestingly, not all family members are convinced there is a crisis.

Omondi Oginga, Oburu’s younger brother, dismissed the tensions as media hype. There is no crack in the Odinga family. Winnie is a politician and is only playing her own game. She is not challenging her uncle. But his reassurances have done little to calm public anxiety.

The stakes extend far beyond family pride. ODM boasts 6.3 million members, making it Kenya’s largest political party and a prize target for external actors.

President Ruto is reportedly courting the party, while former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is said to be exploring opportunities to exploit the divisions ahead of 2027.

The succession battle has also seen multiple leaders position themselves as potential Luo community kingpins, a role Raila occupied for over three decades. Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, Energy CS Opiyo Wandayi, Treasury CS John Mbadi, Interior PS Raymond Omollo and Babu Owino are all jostling for regional supremacy, each backed by different factions.

As the Kawuor clan prepares for more elaborate commemorations of Jaramogi’s death once Oburu returns from official duties abroad, the unresolved tensions threaten to overshadow what should be a solemn family occasion. For now, all eyes are on whether Winnie and Raila Junior will heed the clan’s warning or whether the Odinga dynasty will fracture irreparably under the weight of ambition, tradition and political intrigue.

The ghost of 1994 looms large, a reminder that in Kenyan politics, family feuds can destroy even the mightiest of political machines.