Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has acknowledged the leadership role played by Kenya’s youth during the June 2024 Gen Z-led protests, noting that he respected their call for him to stay away as they demanded better governance.
In an interview with NTV on Sunday, Raila said the issues raised by the youth during the protests were not new, emphasizing that the opposition had been advocating for the same reforms in 2023 through the National Dialogue Committee (Nadco). The committee’s report, which offered key recommendations on governance, economic policy, and institutional reforms, remains largely unimplemented.
“If the Nadco report had been implemented earlier, we would not have ended up with the Gen Z protests because the issues the youth were raising were the ones that we were raising the previous year,” Raila said.
During the protests against the Finance Bill 2024, thousands of young Kenyans took to the streets to oppose tax hikes and what they termed as runaway government spending and unaccountability. The protests turned into a broader demand for systemic change, with some demonstrators explicitly asking older political figures including Raila to let the younger generation lead.
Raila confirmed that he honored their request: “The youth said that they were out to finish the job. They asked me to stay home and I did respect their wishes. I stayed home and they went further than we had gone.”
He lauded the courage of the demonstrators, who defied security threats to march toward major institutions of power. “They stormed Parliament, they even stormed the Judiciary, they were on their way to State House when they were blocked by the forces,” he said.
Raila’s remarks reflect a notable shift in Kenya’s political landscape, where a new generation is asserting its voice independent of the traditional opposition. As the government faces growing pressure to respond to the demands of Gen Z, Raila’s deference to youth activism may signal a changing guard in the country’s struggle for accountability and reform.
