NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 16 — Commotion broke out at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) Thursday morning as thousands of mourners thronged the grounds to receive the body of former Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga, who died in India on Wednesday.
Crowds waving twigs and Kenyan flags filled the airport’s perimeter, singing liberation songs and chanting “Baba! Baba!” as Odinga’s remains were offloaded from flight RAO001, the Kenya Airways aircraft that ferried him home from Kochi.
When the plane landed, emotions overflowed. Some mourners rolled on the tarmac wailing, others blew whistles and horns, while groups of boda boda riders circled the airport, their motorcycles draped in national colors.
Supporters breached security cordons to snap selfies near the aircraft, disrupting a planned State Reception led by President William Ruto.
As the chaos unfolded, Ruto security detail aborted a planned official reception of the body with the Head of State retreating to the presidential pavilion with Ida, Odinga’s widow.
An army carriage departed the airport as security officers from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), National Youth Service (NYS), and ODM party marshals battled to contain the surging crowd, which caused a traffic snarl-up around the airport and delaying the convoy transporting Odinga’s body to Lee Funeral Home.
The body will lie in state at Parliament Buildings later on Thursday for public viewing, ahead of Friday’s State Funeral Service at Nyayo National Stadium and Sunday’s burial in Bondo, Siaya County.
