Raila, Kalonzo join Kenyans as they pay last respects to Moi

ODM leader Raila Odinga and his family pay their last respects to former president Daniel Moi at Parliament on February 10, 2020. PHOTO | COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • Mr Musyoka showered Moi with praises, saying the former president made sure Kenya remained stable for the 24 years he was in power.
  • The body will be taken to the Nyayo National Stadium for a memorial service that will be led by the Africa Inland Church.

Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga was among thousands of Kenyans who thronged Parliament on Monday on the final day of the public viewing of the body of former President Daniel arap Moi.

Mr Odinga, who flew into the country on Monday afternoon from an African Union meeting in Addis Ababa, made his way to Parliament at exactly 2.25pm, just five minutes before the start of a special session of MPs.

Dressed in a dark grey checked suit, complete with a white cowboy hat, Mr Odinga was accompanied by his wife Ida, his son Raila Jr and a host of MPs, led by Senate Minority Leader James Orengo.

With a black flywhisk in his right hand, Mr Odinga, in a sign of respect, removed his hat, raised his right hand carrying the flywhisk before he waved it five times, moving it from left to right, in the same way his father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga mourned founding President Jomo Kenyatta in 1978.

CORDIAL RELATIONSHIP

Mr Odinga then bowed, put his hat back on, and headed to a room in Parliament where he condoled with the family, led by Rongai MP Raymond Moi and Baringo Senator Gideon Moi.

The former prime minister told the family to be strong at this moment of grief, saying the Odingas and Mois have had a good relationship since 1963 when his father Jaramogi met the former president at the Legislative Council (Legco).

Mr Odinga then posed for a group photo with the Moi family. His convoy drove off 30 minutes later.

He did not address a battery of journalists that had already mounted their cameras for him to say a word.

Mr Odinga said he will make his address at today’s memorial service at Nyayo National Stadium.

Earlier, former vice-president and Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka also made his way to Parliament Buildings and paid his last respects to the former president.

NATION'S STABILITY

Mr Musyoka showered Moi with praises, saying that while other countries were experiencing political instability, Moi made sure Kenya remained stable for the 24 years he was in power.

“There were coups d’etat around us, including in Uganda and other countries across Africa during his reign, but President Moi held us together. For that alone, we must celebrate him,” Mr Musyoka said.

“He established the nation Kenya; nobody will ever rule this country for 24 years like Mzee Moi did,” the former VP said.

Archbishop of Voice of Salvation Winnie Owiti, who was among the clerics that offered prayers on Monday, said the former president was a personal friend to her family.

Ms Owiti said she will never forget the day when her husband was involved in an accident in 1984 and was taken for treatment in Kisumu.

MEMORIAL SERVICE

President Moi chartered a plane that transferred him to Nairobi, where he got specialised treatment and he paid all the hospital bills.

“My husband first met Mzee Moi in 1972 while in his evangelism work, and they remained friends ever since,” Ms Owiti said.

“Moi knew that good leadership comes from God — that is how he was able to hold the country together for 24 years,” Ms Owiti said.

Monday marked the end of the public viewing of Moi’s body at Parliament Buildings.

Today, the body will be taken to the Nyayo National Stadium for a memorial service that will be led by the Africa Inland Church.

The former president will be buried on Wednesday at his Kabarak home in Nakuru County. He will be accorded a 19-gun salute in a series of elaborate military ceremonies.