Kenyans on Wednesday marked what would have been former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s 81st birthday with nationwide tributes celebrating the life, legacy and enduring influence of the veteran opposition leader. Wiper Patriotic Front leader Kalonzo Musyoka joined Kenyans in honouring the late Raila, paying a brief but poignant tribute on his posthumous 81st birthday. An X user, Moibenshire, said, “On this day, January 7, 2026, the first posthumous birthday of Raila Amolo Odinga, we remember a giant whose 81st year would have begun. Today, we mark his birthday not as an ordinary birthday, but one observed in the absence of the very rights he fought for. As Kenyans marked his 81st birthday, many described Raila as a national icon whose legacy remains alive in the country’s democratic institutions and ongoing conversations about justice, equality and national cohesion.

Source: The Star January 07, 2026 09:02 UTC