Wiper leader and former Vice President Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka has called on Kenyans to defend the 2010 Constitution in honour of the late Raila Amolo Odinga, saying it was the best way to preserve his legacy.

In a moving tribute shared through the Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka Presidential Secretariat and later posted on X, on Sunday, October 19, 2025, Kalonzo described Raila as a patriot who put country before self. He said the former prime minister was the president who won but was never declared or sworn into office, recalling their shared pain after disputed elections.

“When I received the news of Raila’s death while on my flight to London, I was devastated,” Kalonzo said. :If that was what I felt, I can only try to comprehend what you, Mama Ida, Rosemary, Raila Junior and Winnie—indeed, the whole Odinga family—are going through.”

He urged Kenyans to uphold the values Raila fought for, including justice, democracy, and national unity.

“In Raila Amolo Odinga’s memory, to stand for what is right and just,” he said. “To always, in the face of injustice, abductions and illegal detentions, and the assault on freedom of speech; rise up and defend our Constitution of 2010, and above all else, to be of service to this great Republic of Kenya, in earnest endeavour, just as Baba showed us and taught all of us.”

Kalonzo revives the Canaan dream

Kalonzo told mourners that Raila’s sacrifices should inspire all citizens to serve the country faithfully.

“If even a fraction of you honour Baba in this way, Kenya will surely get to Canaan,” he said, referencing their famous 2017 campaign slogan.

During Raila’s state funeral at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology in Bondo, Kalonzo revisited that same Canaan dream.

“We called you Joshua, but we never got to Canaan. There were crocodiles across the River Jordan,” he said, borrowing from the biblical imagery they often used on the campaign trail.

He also reflected on Raila’s resilience in the face of political pain.

“The tears, the pain of a stolen election, will not be in vain,” he pledged. “You may never get there with us, but we will get there on your behalf.”

Raila’s burial was the first-ever state funeral held for a leader from the Nyanza region. It was attended by President William Ruto, foreign dignitaries, and thousands of mourners who gathered to honour the man many described as Kenya’s eternal reformist.