Jaramogi Ajuma Oginga Odinga (October 1911 – 20 January 1994) was a Kenyan politician who became a prominent figure in
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
's struggle for independence. He served as
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
's first
vice-president
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
, and thereafter as opposition leader. Odinga's son
Raila Odinga
Raila Amolo Odinga (born 7 January 1945) is a Kenyan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. He was the Member of Parliament (Kenya), Member of Parliament (MP) for Langata Constituency from 1992 to 2013 and has ...
is a former
prime minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
,
and another son,
Oburu Odinga, is a former assistant minister in the Ministry of Finance.
Jaramogi is credited for the phrase "Not Yet Uhuru" which is the title of his autobiography published in 1967. "Uhuru" means freedom in Swahili and he was referencing his belief that even after independence from British colonialism, the brutal oppression of opposition in political affairs in Kenya, meant that the country had still not attained real freedom. For example, Jaramogi's son
Raila Odinga
Raila Amolo Odinga (born 7 January 1945) is a Kenyan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. He was the Member of Parliament (Kenya), Member of Parliament (MP) for Langata Constituency from 1992 to 2013 and has ...
also spent eight years in detention, although he later served as prime minister.
Early years and career
Oginga Odinga was born in the village of Nyamira Kang'o,
Bondo, to Mama Opondo Nyamagolo and Odinga Raila. In his autobiography, ''Not Yet Uhuru'', Odinga estimates the date of his birth to be October 1911. Christened
Obadiah Adonijah, he later renounced his Christian names and became known as Oginga Odinga. He was a student of
Maseno School and
Alliance High School. He went to
Makerere University
Makerere University (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922, and the oldest currently active university in East Africa. It became an independent national university in ...
in 1940, and returned to
Maseno High School as a teacher. In 1948 he joined the political party
Kenya African Union (KAU).
Spurred to empower his
Kenyan Luo ethnic group, Odinga started the Luo Thrift and Trading Corporation (registered in 1947). With time, Odinga and his group undertook to strengthen the union between
Luo people
The Luo are a Nilotic peoples, Nilotic-speaking ethnic group native to Nyanza Province, western Kenya and the Mara Region of northern Tanzania. The Luo are the fourth-largest ethnic group (10.65%) in Kenya, after the Kikuyu people, Kikuyu (1 ...
in the whole of East Africa. His efforts earned him admiration and recognition among the Luo, who revered him as ''Ker'' – a title previously held by the fabled classical Luo king, Ramogi Ajwang, who reigned 400 years before him. Vowing to uphold the ideals of Ramogi Ajwang, Odinga became known as ''Jaramogi'' (man of the people of Ramogi).
Vice presidency
According to Luo tradition, a ''Ker'' cannot be a politician, so Odinga relinquished his position as king in 1957 and became the political spokesman of the Luo. The same year, he
was elected member of the Legislative Council for the Central Nyanza constituency, and in 1958 he joined the Kenya African Union (KAU). He was amongst the founders of the
Kenya Independence Movement
The Kenya Independence Movement (KIM) was a political party in Kenya.
History
The KIM was established in August 1959 by African members of the Legislative Council
A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers ...
in 1959, and in 1960, together with
Tom Mboya he joined
Kenya African National Union
The Kenya African National Union (KANU) is a Kenyan political party that ruled for nearly 40 years after Kenya's independence from British colonial rule in 1963 until its electoral loss in 2002. It was known as Kenya African Union (KAU) from 19 ...
(KANU). When Kenya became a Republic in 1964, he was its first
Vice-President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
.
As Vice-President he did not agree with
Jomo Kenyatta's government. While Odinga had called for closer ties with the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and other countries of the
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP), formally the Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance (TFCMA), was a Collective security#Collective defense, collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Polish People's Republic, Poland, between the Sovi ...
, Kenyatta was in favor of approaching the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and the
Western bloc. This led to Odinga resigning from his post and quitting KANU in 1966 to form the
Kenya People's Union (KPU).
In opposition
The friction between Odinga and Kenyatta continued, and in 1969 Odinga was arrested after the two verbally abused each other publicly at a chaotic function in
Kisumu
Kisumu ( ) is the third-largest city in Kenya located in the Lake Victoria area in the former Nyanza Province. It is the second-largest city after Kampala in the Lake Victoria Basin. The city has a population of slightly over 600,000. The ...
– and where at least 11 people were killed and dozens were injured in riots. That was when Jomo as the President of Kenya was to open New Nyanza General Hospital (Russia Hospital), in October 1969 which was seen as Odinga's project due to his Russian connection. Due to the incident KPU was banned making Kenya a de facto party state under KANU. He was detained along with other KPU members for eighteen months until the Government made decision to free him on 27 March 1971.
He consigned to political limbo until after Kenyatta's death in August 1978. In the
Uganda–Tanzania War (1978–1979), Odinga reportedly supported anti-
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 30 May 192816 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until Uganda–Tanzania War, his overthrow in 1979. He ruled as a Military dictatorship, ...
rebels, sheltering a number of them at his farm in
Bondo District during the preparation phase for the
Battle of Tororo.
Kenyatta's successor,
Daniel arap Moi
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi ( ; 2 September 1924 – 4 February 2020) was a Kenyan politician who served as the second president of Kenya from 1978 to 2002. He is the country's longest-serving president to date. Moi previously served as the thi ...
, appointed Odinga as chairman of the Cotton Lint and Seed Marketing Board. He did not last long in the post, presumably due to past grudges he was still outspoken against Kenyatta's policies. Odinga accused Jomo as a land grabber and that was why they had differed. Odinga attempted to register a political party in 1982, but The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Act, 1982 (which made Kenya a ''
de jure
In law and government, ''de jure'' (; ; ) describes practices that are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. The phrase is often used in contrast with '' de facto'' ('from fa ...
'' single-party state), foiled his plans.
Following the
failed coup of 1982 against Moi's government, Odinga was placed again under house arrest in Kisumu. In 1990, he tried in vain with others to register an opposition party, the
National Democratic Party. In 1991 he co-founded and became the interim chairman of
Forum for the Restoration of Democracy
Forum or The Forum may refer to:
Common uses
*Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States
*Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city
**Roman Forum, most famous example
* Internet forum, discussion board ...
(FORD). The formation of FORD triggered a chain of events that were to change Kenya's political landscape, culminating in 2002 ending KANU's 40 years in power – eight years after Odinga's death.

FORD split before the
1992 elections. Odinga himself vied for the presidency on
Ford-Kenya ticket, but finished fourth with a share of 17.5% votes. However, he regained the
Bondo Constituency seat after being forced out of parliamentary politics for over two decades. Odinga died in 1994 in
Aga Khan Hospital, Kisumu. He is buried at the
Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Mausoleum in his
Bondo home.
Private life
Odinga was
polygamous and had four wives: Mary Juma, Gaudencia Adeya, Susan Agik, and Betty Adongo. With these wives, he had seventeen children. Mary was the mother of
Raila and
Oburu. Mary died in 1984.
Global policy
He was one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for drafting a
world constitution. As a result, for the first time in human history, a
World Constituent Assembly convened to draft and adopt the
Constitution for the Federation of Earth.
See also
*
Luo people of Kenya and Tanzania
References
East Africa Living Encyclopedia African Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania
External links
Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odinga, Jaramogi Oginga
1911 births
1994 deaths
People from Siaya County
Kenyan socialists
Kenyan Luo people
Kenya African National Union politicians
Kenya People's Union politicians
Forum for the Restoration of Democracy politicians
Forum for the Restoration of Democracy – Kenya politicians
Members of the National Assembly (Kenya)
Vice-presidents of Kenya
Makerere University alumni
Alumni of Maseno School
Alumni of Maranda High School
Members of the Legislative Council of Kenya
Kenyan Luo politicians
World Constitutional Convention call signatories
Alumni of Alliance High School (Kenya)