Political strategist Raila Odinga has once again found herself at the centre of online debate after social media users circulated an old screenshot from 2017, questioning her past relationship with the late opposition leader and dismissing her public remarks describing him as a close mentor and father figure.
Responding to the controversy, political analyst and strategist Pauline Njoroge has strongly defended her account, saying the attempts to distort her relationship with the former Prime Minister ignore years of professional and personal interaction that followed Kenya’s highly charged 2017 political season.
Njoroge noted that the 2017 period was marked by intense political rivalry, where leaders and their supporters exchanged harsh statements.
She said even Raila Odinga and former President Uhuru Kenyatta publicly acknowledged and apologised for the heated political exchanges that defined that election cycle.
“In 2017, we were on different political sides. Like in any heated political contest, many things were said in the course of political banter,” she said, adding that the context of that period cannot be used to define her later relationship with the veteran opposition leader.
According to Njoroge, her working relationship with Raila Odinga deepened from November 2018 when she began collaborating with him shortly after his appointment as African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development.
At the time, she was working with the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), where their offices coordinated on development initiatives across the continent.
She further stated that she later became part of Raila Odinga’s 2022 presidential campaign team and was again appointed in 2024 to serve on his African Union Commission (AUC) campaign structure, roles she says exposed her to high-level continental engagements and policy discussions.
“Over a period of seven years, I had the privilege of learning directly from him. He gave me numerous opportunities, travelled with me across Africa and beyond, and allowed me to sit in high-level meetings that shaped my perspective and growth,” she said.
Njoroge described Raila Odinga as a leader who embraced talent beyond ethnic or political lines, saying he often encouraged her work and expressed confidence in her professional abilities.
“That was Baba. A man who never judged me by my tribe or my previous political positions. He saw my potential and gave me an opportunity,” she said, referring to Raila Odinga by his widely used nickname.
She also revealed that her final conversation with the late leader took place on 8 October 2025 while he was in India, just a week before his passing. She said she publicly acknowledged that interaction at the time.
Defending herself against critics, Njoroge questioned what she described as selective political memory among those dismissing her account.
“Do you claim to know me better than Baba did?” she posed, while also pointing to shifting political alliances in the country and questioning the consistency of those attacking her narrative.
She further cited the broader history of political reconciliation between Raila Odinga and his former rivals, arguing that past conflicts should not be weaponised against individuals who later worked with him.
Njoroge concluded by reflecting on her recent visit to Kisumu, where she said she received warm public reception.
She noted that many young people openly associated her with Raila Odinga, describing her as “msichana wa Baba,” a sign she said reflected genuine grassroots perception rather than online criticism.