Winnie Odinga Challenges Soyinka Lempaa to Public Debate After His Remarks About Raila’s Family

Winnie Odinga has challenged human rights activist Soyinka Lempaa to a public debate after he made critical remarks about her late father, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, and his family.

The exchange has attracted attention online, with Kenyans sharing differing opinions about Lempaa’s comments and Winnie’s response.

Lempaa questioned Raila’s political legacy and criticised his family’s influence, making remarks that prompted Winnie to respond directly.

What did Soyinka Lempaa say about Raila Odinga?

In his statement, Lempaa argued that Raila’s legacy should not be shielded from criticism, regardless of the efforts made to honour the former opposition leader.

“No matter how many people are involved, no matter how much resources you spend on deifying Raila Odinga, he died offside, was buried by his enemies, was a very transactional man and his family is very extractive. You can bend some parts of history but you cannot bend the whole of it,” Lempaa said.

His remarks questioned both Raila’s political record and the role of his family, sparking debate among social media users.

Winnie responded with a direct invitation for the activist to defend his statements in a public forum rather than leave the matter to online exchanges.

“Let’s have a public debate. Name the time and the place,” she replied.

Her response placed the next move in Lempaa’s hands, leaving him to decide whether to accept the challenge.

The exchange prompted different reactions, with some social media users agreeing with Lempaa’s assessment while others questioned his criticism or challenged his own record.

User acy_mathenge appeared to support Lempaa’s remarks, referring to the government-to-government oil import arrangement in Kenya.

“On point. Very transactional, especially the G-to-G oil deal,” the user commented.

Iddygalgalo also expressed agreement, writing: “When they hear this, they will start insults and it is true.”

Another user, pmaina_tafsiri, shared a similar view, stating: “As much as they hate to hear it, that’s what it is.”

However, not everyone focused on whether Lempaa’s claims were justified. Nganiengatch questioned the activist’s own contribution to the country, asking: “What has this one achieved in terms of making any difference in Kenya?”

Meanwhile, moo.je offered a brief response, writing: “Somebody needed to say this.”

The contrasting reactions highlighted the divisions among online users over the assessment of Raila’s legacy and the criticism directed at his family.

Will Soyinka Lempaa accept Winnie’s challenge?

Winnie’s invitation has set the stage for a possible public exchange between the two, although there was no confirmation in the report that Lempaa had accepted the challenge.

Whether the activist will name a time and venue for the proposed debate remains unclear.

For now, the exchange has shifted attention from Lempaa’s original remarks to the possibility of a direct discussion in which both sides could present their arguments publicly.