Principal Secretary for the State Department of Justice, Human Rights and Constitutional Affairs, Judith Pareno, expressed deep gratitude to President William Ruto and the late Raila Odinga during her thanksgiving ceremony in Kajiado County on Saturday, February 28, 2026.

She spoke at the homecoming event in Mashuuru, where heavy rain fell as the president arrived, which she described as a sign of blessings.

“It’s only by God’s grace that today, Your Excellency, through your appointment, I have broken another record. Perhaps others do not know, but we have never had a Maasai Principal Secretary in this country since independence. Thank you, Your Excellency, because through you, we have a record,” Pareno said.

She highlighted her appointment as Principal Secretary for Justice, Human Rights, and Constitutional Affairs, following the formation of the broad-based government between President Ruto’s administration and Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) in early 2025.

Pareno, a former nominated senator and ODM figure, joined the government in March 2025 as part of efforts to include more opposition allies. She was part of the cohort of Principal Secretaries inaugurated in April 2025.

Pareno gave credit to Raila Odinga, whom she fondly called Baba, for her earlier political roles.

“Sir, my gratitude would not be complete if I did not mention Baba Raila Amolo Odinga. Sir, through the broad-based government that you initiated with Baba—may his soul rest in peace—I am here today standing before you because of your appointment, which made me Principal Secretary for Justice, Human Rights, and Constitutional Affairs,” she explained.

“Baba made me among the first women MPs in this country by taking me to EALA, Baba took me to the senate as a nominated senator, and now, Mr. President, you have appointed me as Principal Secretary.”

She noted the rain during the event:

“I thank you, and no wonder the clouds have spoken today, welcoming you with lots of rain. In Maasai culture, when it rains like this, it is showers of blessings upon the land. When it rains and a visitor is coming, that visitor is blessed. Your Excellency, you have come with blessings, and for that, we thank you.”

Baba’s last words

Pareno shared a personal story about her last meeting with Raila on May 27, 2025. She visited him after her appointment to seek a date for a Thanksgiving event with both him and the president present. She recalled his words:

“Your Excellency, on 27th of May, 2025, I went to visit Baba to ask him, after appointment, I went to ask him for a date, for a thanksgiving, with him present and you present, because I’m one such grateful person. I am so grateful to you. the day has come today, to give thanks to you, and this day has come, but I know Baba’s spirit is here.”

“The last message that Baba gave me on 27th May, and I quote him, was: ‘I have taken and encouraged you to stay in government. Can you work hard, because what I have planned together with the president is for the good of this country.'”

She added that witnesses, including the Deputy Governor of Kajiado County, the ODM Kajiado County chair, and another associate. Pareno described Raila as treating her like a Maasai daughter.

She concluded by echoing Raila’s message:

“Those were Baba’s last words to me as his Maasai daughter. And I want to echo the same today: Baba left us in government, and he left us with His Excellency, Dr. William Samoei Ruto.”