Suba North MP Millie Mabona has criticised what she describes as the return of self-serving political narratives involving the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, warning leaders against using his legacy for political mileage.

Her remarks followed a televised interview in which Raila’s former spokesperson Dennis Onyango shared private conversations he had with the ODM leader before his death. The interview also included wider claims about Raila’s political decisions, burial wishes, and internal campaign dynamics.

In a post shared on social media, Mabona said Kenya had already moved past what she called a wave of “what Baba told me” stories.

“Post the death of Baba Raila Amollo Odinga, we had a season of ‘what Baba told me’. It had become too boring and fake and mercifully started dying out. It should not be resurrected for political and self-serving reasons,” she wrote.

She urged political leaders to avoid personal storytelling that she said distorts public debate.

“Let us learn the art of uniting people without cheap propaganda. Let us learn the art of seeking votes for our candidates without cheap propaganda. Sometimes it has the opposite effect,” she added.

Mabona’s comments came after Dennis Onyango’s interview on TV on June 7, 2026. However, Mabona’s criticism is of what she sees as growing political misuse of different accounts.

She argues that repeated claims about what Raila allegedly “said in private” risk turning his legacy into political capital rather than national reflection.

Raila’s death triggered a surge of public commentary from former aides and allies, many of whom have shared personal recollections of his final days. Some of these accounts have been used to signal closeness to the late ODM leader or justify current political positions.

Mabona insists this trend weakens meaningful political debate and shifts attention away from policy and governance.

As a long-serving ODM MP, she has consistently called for disciplined political communication and party unity. Her remarks also reflect wider concerns within ODM about managing internal cohesion in a post-Raila political era, where competing narratives about his legacy risk deepening divisions.

Mutua campaign claims surface

Beyond the burial debate, Dennis Onyango’s interview also touched on deeper political issues, including the 2022 presidential election.

Onyango made strong claims that constitutional law expert Makau Mutua played a central role in Raila’s 2022 presidential campaign structure, which he said contributed to the ODM leader’s defeat.

“One person I won’t forgive is Makau Mutua. I don’t think he added any value to Raila’s campaign, and up to today I still believe he derailed us,” Onyango said.

He accused Mutua of taking control of campaign operations and sidelining long-serving ODM and Azimio la Umoja strategists.

“He took over a person he did not understand and edged everybody out,” Onyango claimed.

Onyango further argued that effective political campaigns require a clear separation between personal relationships and professional strategy, something he believes was not observed in 2022.

“You can’t be a candidate’s person and also remain his drinking buddy. A campaign must be separated from personal friendship,” he said.

Prof Makau Mutua served as spokesperson for Raila’s 2022 presidential campaign team and later played roles in Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya coalition engagements, including bipartisan dialogue processes.

The new claims have added another layer to the ongoing public debate triggered by Onyango’s interview, which has already drawn strong reactions from political leaders and commentators.

Onyango also described Raila as a leader who rarely focused on death and remained committed to political ideas and long-term projects until his final days.

“Raila talked about death very casually,” he said, adding that Raila was working on initiatives such as a democracy institute and documentation of his speeches.

He further said Raila supported dialogue-based politics and cooperation under Kenya’s broad political arrangements.

Onyango also reflected on Raila’s views of younger politicians, including Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, whom Raila reportedly admired for his communication skills, and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, whom he saw as ambitious but sometimes impatient.