MP Millie Odhiambo warns against ‘Baba told me’ stories after Dennis Onyango interview

Suba North MP Millie Mabona has criticised what she describes as the return of self-serving political narratives involving the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, warning leaders against using his legacy for political mileage.

Her remarks followed a televised interview in which Raila’s former spokesperson Dennis Onyango shared private conversations he had with the ODM leader before his death. The interview also included wider claims about Raila’s political decisions, burial wishes, and internal campaign dynamics.

In a post shared on social media, Mabona said Kenya had already moved past what she called a wave of “what Baba told me” stories.

“Post the death of Baba Raila Amollo Odinga, we had a season of ‘what Baba told me’. It had become too boring and fake and mercifully started dying out. It should not be resurrected for political and self-serving reasons,” she wrote.

She urged political leaders to avoid personal storytelling that she said distorts public debate.

“Let us learn the art of uniting people without cheap propaganda. Let us learn the art of seeking votes for our candidates without cheap propaganda. Sometimes it has the opposite effect,” she added.

Mabona’s comments came after Dennis Onyango’s interview on TV on June 7, 2026. However, Mabona’s criticism is of what she sees as growing political misuse of different accounts.

She argues that repeated claims about what Raila allegedly “said in private” risk turning his legacy into political capital rather than national reflection.

Raila’s death triggered a surge of public commentary from former aides and allies, many of whom have shared personal recollections of his final days. Some of these accounts have been used to signal closeness to the late ODM leader or justify current political positions.

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Mabona insists this trend weakens meaningful political debate and shifts attention away from policy and governance.

As a long-serving ODM MP, she has consistently called for disciplined political communication and party unity. Her remarks also reflect wider concerns within ODM about managing internal cohesion in a post-Raila political era, where competing narratives about his legacy risk deepening divisions.

Beyond the burial debate, Dennis Onyango’s interview also touched on deeper political issues, including the 2022 presidential election.

He further said Raila supported dialogue-based politics and cooperation under Kenya’s broad political arrangements.

Onyango also reflected on Raila’s views of younger politicians, including Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, whom Raila reportedly admired for his communication skills, and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, whom he saw as ambitious but sometimes impatient.

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