Longtime spokesperson for former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Dennis Onyango, who officially began working with him in 2008, has revealed that the former Premier knew his time was up.
Onyango also recalled the final instructions Raila gave him before flying to India for treatment.
Speaking to former NTV Senior Reporter Kennedy Mureithi, Onyango, whose last physical interaction with the ODM leader was on October 3, 2025, said he felt Raila knew his time was near after their interaction in February 2024.
“I knew, and I told people, that from a year or slightly less than a year earlier. I told people that this man seemed to know his time was up. I knew Raila knew that his time was up from the way we were talking, from the instructions he gave.
I traveled with him to Germany in February 2024. He took me to the schools he attended in Germany,” said Onyango.
Dennis Onyango Shares Moments that Felt Raila Knew His Time Was Up
During their time in Germany, Onyango narrated that the former Prime Minister insisted he carry his notebook to ensure accuracy about his educational history and to tie up loose ends.
“Throughout the entire tour of Germany, he kept asking, ‘Have you carried your notebook?’ just to make sure I got the facts right, from his high school to the college and university he attended. He would insist I take notes.
I could see that he wanted to tie up loose ends. There were gaps where people were not very clear, like details about his high school education and why he went to Germany. I could tell that he was closing those gaps,” said Raila’s spokesperson.
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Onyango added that from that trip, he felt Raila was “winding up his things.”
“We went to his university, the mechanical engineering department, and the professor there confirmed that he graduated with a degree. From that journey in February 2024, I could tell that this man was winding up his affairs,” Onyango said.
Last Instructions Former Prime Minister Issued to His Spokesperson
Additionally, Onyango revealed the last instructions Raila gave him, which included consolidating his collection of speeches.
“We had talked about his collection of speeches before, but we discussed them again that day. He asked me to compile them, and I promised I would.
He was also working on a biography. That biography was the reason I was there that day, he called me the day before at around 7:00 p.m. and told me the person who was to work on it had arrived from South Africa,” Onyango recalled.
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At the same time, Raila Odinga’s spokesperson spoke about the final moments he shared with the former Prime Minister.
“On the day we were sitting with Raila, he was not sick. Raila was eighty, and people talk as if he was not old. All his agemates in the villages across Kenya are grounded; they cannot move, they cannot board vehicles or planes. Raila was strong and energetic.
He only had the usual old men’s issues like knee and back pain. My concern was that he was not following the doctors’ instructions,” Onyango said.
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