Kenya's unfailing opposing leader

RAILA Amolo Odinga, whose death at 80 was announced yesterday, spent most of his adult life in politics, including eight years in prison as a pro-democracy campaigner but never achieved his goal of becoming Kenya's president, despite five attempts.

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Odinga, who died during a trip to an Ayurvedic health clinic in India according to local police, cast himself as an anti-establishment firebrand despite belonging to one of Kenya's top political dynasties.

Born on January 7, 1945, he spent his early years in politics either in jail or in exile, fighting for democracy during the autocratic rule of president Daniel arap Moi.

A member of the Luo tribe, he entered parliament in 1992 and ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 1997, 2007, 2013, 2017 and 2022, claiming to have been cheated of victory in the last four elections.