JUBA – South Sudan President Salva Kiir expressed profound sorrow on Wednesday following the death of Kenya’s former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who he remembers as a Pan Africanist with a lifelong dedication to democracy and justice.
Odinga died of a suspected heart attack while visiting a health clinic in Kochi, southern India, according to family sources.
His body arrived in Nairobi on Thursday as a large crowd gathered at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to greet the coffin, AFP news agency reported.
“It is with profound sorrow and a deep sense of loss that I learned of the passing of the Right Honourable Raila Amolo Odinga, EGH, the former Prime Minister,” Kiir said in a statement posted on his Facebook page.
“The late was a distinguished Pan Africanist whose lifelong dedication to democracy, justice, and national unity made him an enduring symbol of leadership and integrity in Kenya and across Africa.”
The President extended condolences to the family of Odinga and the people of Kenya, saying South Sudan stands with them in prayer and solidarity.
Kenya’s president William Ruto has announced seven days of national mourning for Odinga, a longtime opposition leader, who ran unsuccessfully for the presidency five times but played a major role in Kenyan politics over several decades.
Odinga’s body was due to be taken to parliament, with public grieving spaces set up around Nairobi before a state funeral service on Friday.
The body will then be moved to western Kenya where Odinga was born and enjoyed great support. A burial service will take place on Sunday.
