NAIROBI, Kenya Jan 27 – For weeks, Winnie Odinga was the loudest rebel inside the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).
She challenged the party’s new leadership, warned that things would be “hot” at the next party meeting, and accused senior figures of exploiting her late father Raila Odinga’s name for personal gain.
Then something changed.
Just days after President William Ruto appointed her mother, Ida Odinga, to a top diplomatic post at the United Nations, Winnie went quiet.
The sudden silence has raised speculations if Winnie’s rebellion was tamed by power.
On January 18, 2026, Winnie delivered one of her most fiery speeches yet at a rally in Kibra.
She dismissed claims that her late father Raila Odinga had endorsed ODM’s growing cooperation with President Ruto’s government and accused some party leaders of hijacking his legacy.
“We were passengers and Baba was the driver. Then one day Baba was no more. Suddenly, those who were near him rushed to the steering wheel, and now they are pulling it in every direction,” Winnie said.
She warned ODM leaders against rushing into political deals and coalition talks, insisting that Raila’s death was still fresh and the party needed time to reflect.
“We are saying today: relax. Baba died just the other day. What is the hurry?” she told cheering supporters.
At the time, Winnie positioned herself as the moral voice of the party, defiant, emotional, and openly critical of the new power centres forming within ODM after Raila’s death in October 2025.
– Winnie Odinga silence after Ida UNEP appointment –
Five days later, on January 23, President Ruto nominated Ida Odinga as Kenya’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
On January 25, Ida accepted the appointment, calling it “an honour” and saying she was happy to serve.
The timing immediately raised eyebrows.
Since then, Winnie who had promised political fireworks at ODM’s upcoming National Delegates Convention has made no major public statements attacking the party leadership or its engagement with Ruto’s administration.
To many Kenyans, the contrast was striking.
Just days earlier, she was quoting Kenyan rap lyrics to declare she could not be intimidated.
Now, her voice was absent from the very debate she had ignited.
Winnie’s criticism came at a delicate moment for ODM.
Following Raila’s death, his elder brother and Siaya Senator Oburu Oginga took over party leadership and signalled plans to formalise political alignments ahead of the 2027 elections.
Oburu has said ODM intends to complete its coalition talks by June 2026, including discussions with President Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA).
Winnie publicly questioned whether the current leadership had the moral authority or political weight to manage such negotiations.
“There is only one Raila Odinga,” she said at the Kibra rally, dismissing claims that anyone else could speak on his behalf.
– Ida Odinga’s UNEP job and the politics of power –
Ida’s appointment itself has not united the party.
Some senior ODM figures, including Deputy Party Leader Godfrey Osotsi, openly criticised the UNEP role, describing it as “too small” for Ida’s stature and urging her to reject it.
That reaction only deepened questions about what the appointment really represents, a diplomatic honour, a political bridge, or a calculated move in Kenya’s power chessboard.
As ODM prepares for a crucial National Delegates Convention, the silence of its most vocal internal critic is becoming part of the story.
Winnie had promised confrontation.
She warned of accountability.
She positioned herself as the guardian of Raila’s legacy.
Now, Kenyans are watching closely.
Is she regrouping for a bigger fight?
Has family responsibility taken priority over political rebellion?
Or has the system once again proven that in Kenyan politics, access to power speaks louder than defiance?
One thing is certain, in a country where political silence is rarely accidental, Winnie’s quiet has become louder than her speeches.
And the debate it has sparked is only just beginning.
