Dr Oginga, the elder brother of the late Raila, said the day’s ceremony was deeply rooted in Luo traditions that guide family transitions after the death of a patriarch
Raila Odinga Junior assumed leadership of the Odinga home following a traditional ceremony held at the family’s residence in Bondo on Thursday.
The event, led by his uncle Dr Oburu Oginga, marked a significant cultural milestone for the family, a formal passing of authority and responsibility within the household, following the burial of the late Raila Odinga.
Dr Oginga, the elder brother of the late Raila, said the day’s ceremony was deeply rooted in Luo traditions that guide family transitions after the death of a patriarch.
He emphasised that this was not a political event but a customary handover of domestic leadership and blessings.
“The seat of power in this home is now with Junior, together with his mother. The mum will be there to give him all the advice he needs, but he must stand firm. He must stand firm and lead the home in our culture," he said.
He explained that while Junior would now head the household, the larger Odinga family remained under his own cultural authority as the family patriarch.
“This is not political leadership, family. The larger Odinga family, which I chair and lead, just as his father was when it came to cultural leadership," he said.
According to Luo customs, chieng’ mar ang’wen (the fourth day) after burial marks the formal end of the mourning period.
On this day, the Odinga family gathered to perform the traditional rites that signalled the closure of mourning for their departed kin.
“My brother was buried on Sunday last week,” explained Dr Oburu Oginga. “Counting from Sunday to last night makes four nights. In our culture, the fourth day is when the funeral officially ends. That is when daughters married elsewhere return to their homes, and sons who have been here during mourning are allowed to go back to their families.”
Dr Oginga emphasised that the Odingas were following the same traditions that had been performed when their patriarch, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, was laid to rest.
“We do not disregard culture,” he said. “Even in the Bible, Isaac blessed his sons Jacob and Esau. The same applies in our customs. Blessings and ceremonies to pass authority have always been part of both our faith and our culture.”
Liedo, the traditional head-shaving ritual, commenced.
According to elders, the act of shaving, though simple in appearance, carries immense spiritual significance.
It symbolises cleansing, renewal, and the transition from mourning to continuity: the restoration of life’s balance after death has passed through a home.
Raila Junior, the younger son of the former Premier and now the family’s eldest surviving male, was the focus of this rite.
According to custom, he was to take up the mantle of leadership as the new head of the family.
“Junior will take the leadership of the family and all the instruments of power as a sign of his new role,” Dr Oginga declared.
Before being handed the symbols of authority, a spear and traditional attire, Junior underwent the Liedo.
His elder aunt placed a mark on his head to symbolise that she was the one carrying out the rite. She then ushered the barber to complete the shaving.
The hum of the shaving machine replaced the old rasp of razors, a modern echo of an ancient sound.
When the shaving was done, Junior was dressed in traditional attire, his hands gripping the spear that signified strength and responsibility.
Dr Oginga noted that a mark would also be placed on Mama Ida Odinga’s head, symbolically indicating that she, too, had been cleansed through the ritual.
“In our culture, even the widow’s cleansing is part of renewal. It allows life to move forward without breaking the bond of respect to the departed," he said.
Traditionally, the shaving was a far more elaborate ceremony carried out in stages.
Elders recall that razors were once drawn across the scalps of widows and children first, followed by other mourners later.
“In the old days, you could hear the scrape of blades at dawn,” said Mr John Akumu, an elder from Alego.
“That sound told the village that mourning had begun. Today, people do it once, if at all, sometimes just a symbolic patch at the back.”
Following the ceremony, another ritual unfolded: the symbolic dispersal of mourners.
Relatives began to leave the homestead one by one, the eldest first and the youngest last.
This gradual departure represented grief loosening its grip on the family. Each farewell was not only a goodbye but also an affirmation that life must continue.
In the days that followed, relatives, especially sisters-in-law and aunts, would return to the homestead carrying food.
They would cook and share a meal with the widow and her children, a ritual known as yao dhoot, literally meaning “opening the door.”
“It was about life continuing,” explained Jane Owiti, a widow from Gem. “After death closes a door, yao dhoot opens it again. The meal brings warmth back into the home and welcomes normal life to return.”
Another essential ritual, tero chola, would follow soon after.
This was the widow’s visit to her birthplace before she could be inherited, a practice deeply embedded in Luo widowhood customs.
During this visit, a goat would be slaughtered, and its meat shared between the widow and her parents. The act reaffirmed her connection to her lineage before she returned to her homestead to begin life anew with her chosen inheritor.
