On Thursday, October 23, 2025, Raila Jnr was formally installed during a traditional Luo ceremony known as Liedo, held at the family’s Opoda Farm in Bondo — just three days after the nation bid farewell to his father.
Bondo, Siaya County — The late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s surviving son, Raila Odinga Junior, has officially stepped into his father’s shoes as the new head of the Odinga household.
The intimate yet significant ritual symbolised the passing of leadership within the homestead to the next male heir. Dancers in colourful traditional regalia filled the compound, chanting rhythmic Luo songs that echoed both mourning and renewal. The air was thick with emotion as elders, relatives, and close family friends witnessed the transition of authority from the fallen patriarch to his son.
Online Trolls Target Raila Junior
In the days leading up to the ceremony, several Kenyan social media users, especially on platforms like TikTok, created content mocking Raila Junior’s facial appearance. Some posted lip-syncing videos, distortions, and challenges targeting his facial paralysis — sparking widespread debate online about empathy and cyberbullying.
In videos shared on TikTok, users could be seen lip-syncing to Junior’s speeches during the funeral service of his father, turning moments of grief into ridicule.
Raila Junior suffers from Acoustic Neuroma, also known as Vestibular Schwannoma, a noncancerous and slow-growing tumour that develops on the main (vestibular) nerve leading from the inner ear to the brain. The condition, which he has previously revealed to be hereditary from his mother’s side, causes paralysis on the left side of his face.
In 2022, Junior clarified that his condition was not Bell’s Palsy, a more common temporary form of facial paralysis, as many had assumed. He explained that Acoustic Neuroma is a rare but lifelong condition that he continues to manage with resilience.
Despite the trolling, many Kenyans came to his defense, applauding his strength and composure during the mourning period, especially as he took on the symbolic leadership role within one of Kenya’s most prominent political families.
The Meaning Behind the Ceremony
According to Luo customs, the *Liedo* ceremony is performed roughly four days after the burial of a patriarch. It serves as a crucial rite of passage marking the end of mourning and the beginning of new leadership within the family.
The central act of the ritual is the shaving of the heir’s head — a symbolic gesture that represents cleansing, rebirth, and the continuity of lineage. Traditionally, the ceremony would take place near a body of water, such as a river or lake, where the shaving symbolically washed away the shadow of death. Over time, families have adapted, now holding the ceremony within homesteads while preserving its cultural essence.
In keeping with custom, the shaving is typically performed by the eldest sister of the deceased, who makes three symbolic cuts before the full head is shaved. The act signifies the heir’s readiness to lead, both spiritually and socially, as the family’s new pillar.
A New Chapter for the Odinga Family
With the passing of Raila Odinga, the role naturally fell upon Junior, following the earlier death of his elder brother, Fidel Odinga, in 2015. Family sources describe the younger Odinga as calm yet resolute — embracing his new role with a deep sense of duty and humility.
Observers noted that while the ritual followed tradition closely, some elements were adapted to modern times. The late Raila’s elder brother, Dr. Oburu Oginga, who presided over parts of the ceremony, hinted that Raila Jnr’s wife had expressed some reservations about participating in the full shaving rite — a reminder of how tradition and contemporary views often intersect.
As the chants faded and the drums quieted, Raila Junior stood surrounded by family — his freshly shaven head a powerful emblem of continuity. The ceremony not only marked the end of mourning for the Odinga household but also the dawn of a new era under Junior’s stewardship.
The *Liedo* at Opoda Farm was more than a family affair — it was a moment of cultural pride, reflection, and renewal for one of Kenya’s most influential families.