Kenya: Late Kenyan Politician Raila Odinga Didn't Endorse MP Babu Owino for Nairobi Governor Post - Ignore Manipulated Video

8 December 2025
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Dancan Bwire

Late Kenyan politician Raila Odinga didn't endorse MP Babu Owino for Nairobi governor post - ignore manipulated video

IN SHORT: A video of the late Kenyan politician Raila Odinga apparently endorsing lawmaker Babu Owino for the Nairobi governor seat is circulating on social media. However, the video has been manipulated and should be ignored.

A video of Kenyan politician Raila Odinga seemingly endorsing lawmaker Paul Ongili Owino, popularly known as Babu Owino, for the Nairobi county governor seat is going viral on Facebook.

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In the video, Odinga appears to say: "To the great people of Nairobi, there is a small change about the governor race of 2027. Previously, I had assured you that I will support governor Sakaja. But the way things are turning around, I feel like Babu Owino is the best choice for the people of Nairobi. Babu Owino for governor."

The text superimposed on the video reads: "Raila Odinga, in unexpected turn of events has dumped Sakaja and endorsed Babu Owino for Nairobi governor 2027."

Odinga died in October 2025 after suffering a cardiac arrest while receiving medical treatment in India. He was buried at his home in Bondo, a town in Siaya county, western Kenya. He was the leader of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party.

Owino is a member of the ODM party and a member of parliament for Embakasi East constituency in Nairobi county. He was first elected on an ODM ticket in 2017 and re-elected in 2022. Owino has declared his bid for the Nairobi governor seat in the 2027 general elections.

Although Owino is popular, he has been a vocal critic of his party's controversial deal with president William Ruto's government and expressed doubts about whether the party will endorse him for the seat.

Johnson Sakaja has been the governor of Nairobi county since 2022, having been elected on the ruling United Democratic Alliance party ticket. In February 2025, Odinga appeared to endorse Sakaja's leadership.

But did Odinga endorse Owino for the seat, as suggested in the video? We checked.

AI-manipulated video

Africa Check noticed that in the video, Odinga's mouth appeared distorted, with his upper lip unusually enlarged. This strongly suggests that the video may have been manipulated using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, which can still struggle to accurately recreate certain human features and movements.

A reverse image search of a screenshot from the video revealed that the original footage was from the party's parliamentary group meeting in Machakos county on 22 September 2025. The event was livestreamed on the party's YouTube channel and covered by some media outlets.

By analysing his gestures in the video, we were able to pinpoint the exact section of the original footage used in the circulating clip. In the original video, he said: "We were very much almost on the precipice, because as you see, after so many days of demonstrations, you saw that eventually the military were on the streets." He was referring to anti-government protests in the country in 2024.

The video has been manipulated to make it sound like Odinga endorsed Owino. It combines an authentic clip with AI-generated audio, creating the impression that Odinga made the remarks.

Odinga did not endorse Owino for the Nairobi governor seat in the 2027 elections.

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Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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