Dennis Onyango, long‑time aide to the late former Prime Minister and ODM leader Raila Odinga, offered new details about Oketch Salah’s relationship with the opposition icon during a televised interview on TV47 on Tuesday, February 17.
Onyango’s remarks come amid rising debates over Salah’s assertions about his connection to Raila Odinga and his role within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).
Speaking on the programme, Onyango acknowledged that Oketch Salah was known to Raila Odinga and had interacted with him on several occasions.
“Everyone who worked with Raila knows Oketch Salah… he was Raila’s friend,” Onyango told host David Gitonga, in one of his most detailed public comments on the matter to date.
Onyango went further, recounting events from the days preceding Raila Odinga’s final departure to India, where he later passed away.
“The day Raila left for India and never to come back, we were with Oketch Salah in Karen, and I spoke to Raila using Salah’s phone,” Onyango stated.
He described the exchange as brief but confirmed that Salah was present during critical moments when Raila’s team was preparing for what became his final journey.
The aide’s comments are significant because they provide direct testimony from a senior member of Raila Odinga’s inner circle at a time when Salah’s claims about his association with the ODM leader have faced public pushback.
Earlier this year, members of the Odinga family, including Winnie Odinga and Raila Odinga Junior, publicly distanced themselves from statements attributed to Salah regarding his closeness to Raila Odinga.
They described some of the assertions circulating on social media as inaccurate or misleading.
Omollo Onyango’s remarks also intersect with ongoing tensions between Salah and the ODM party.
Party officials have reiterated that Salah’s political positioning and activities are undertaken in his personal capacity and do not represent the official stance of ODM.
Senior party leaders have warned against appropriating party symbols or making claims that create confusion about party leadership and alignment.
Despite Onyango’s confirmation of a personal acquaintance, he stopped short of validating any formal leadership role for Salah within the party, underscoring that those roles are determined by ODM’s formal structures.