The first anniversary of Raila Odinga’s death will be marked with a candle-lighting ceremony at Uhuru Park on Friday, October 2, as a month-long tribute to the late former Prime Minister gets underway.
Lang’ata MP and media personality Phelix Odiwuor, popularly known as Jalang’o, announced the event on Tuesday, September 29, saying the gathering will run from 3 pm until midnight.
The ceremony will launch a series of activities planned under the banner Mwezi wa Baba, with Kenyans expected to come together throughout October to remember Raila and reflect on his life and legacy.
“We are starting the month of October very strong! Mwezi wa Baba! This Friday, 2nd October, we will gather at Uhuru Park from 3:00 PM until midnight for a candle-lighting celebration in honour of our late party leader, Baba Raila Amollo Odinga,” Jalang’o said.
The announcement came after Jalang’o first spoke about the October programme on September 18, when he said the activities would run throughout the month and include several events in different parts of the country.
“Mwezi wa Baba will be the whole month of October,” Jalang’o said.
October 2 event to kick off tributes
Jalang’o said the Uhuru Park ceremony would serve as the first major event in the month-long programme.
“The first major event being the candle lighting on the 2nd that will happen at Uhuru Park,” he said.
He also announced plans for a larger gathering at Jacaranda Grounds on October 31. The event is expected to bring together Raila’s supporters and other Kenyans who wish to take part in the activities honouring the former Prime Minister.
The October programme announced by ODM also includes a nationwide candle-lighting ceremony on October 2, alongside memorial activities planned in different counties before the final Nairobi gathering on October 31.
Raila died on October 15, 2025, aged 80, while undergoing medical treatment in India.
He collapsed during a morning walk at a hospital in Kerala before he was pronounced dead at Devamatha Hospital.
His death sparked a nationwide period of mourning, as leaders and members of the public paid tribute to his long political career.
Raila served as Prime Minister between 2008 and 2013 and was the founding leader of the Orange Democratic Movement. He made five unsuccessful presidential bids, contesting the 1997, 2007, 2013, 2017 and 2022 elections.
He was laid to rest at his ancestral home in Bondo, Siaya County, on October 19, 2025.
The Mwezi wa Baba activities come as the country prepares for the first anniversary of Raila’s death.
In addition to the October programme announced by ODM, the Raila Odinga family is organising its own week-long national programme from October 10 to 17.
The family-led commemorations are expected to draw people from political, religious and social circles as they remember the former Prime Minister.
Jalang’o said the activities would provide an opportunity for people who knew Raila, supported him or were influenced by his political journey to come together in his memory.
He called on those interested in taking part to attend the planned events as the country marks one year since Raila’s death.