Student leaders hit back at Uhuru over claim Raila won 2022 election

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta during a Jubilee meeting on September 22, 2026. [Benard Orwongo, Standard]

Universities and colleges student leaders have criticised former President  Uhuru Kenyatta over his recent claim that the late Raila Odinga won the 2022 presidential election.

The leaders described the remarks as divisive and urging the retired president to allow the current administration to govern.

Shadrach Otieno, deputy chairman of the Kisumu Universities and Colleges Students Association, said Kenyatta should not invoke Odinga's name for political purposes.

“We respect the retired president Uhuru Kenyatta, but he has to respect us as a community and people who supported Right Honourable Raila Odinga to his last day on earth. Your excellence, you should not continue to dance on the grave of Raila. Let us allow Baba to rest in peace,” Otieno said.

Kenyatta on Tuesday during a Jubilee Party meeting, said he remained convinced that Odinga had won the presidential contest despite official results declaring William Ruto the winner.

“Tulifanya kila kitu kumsaidia Baba awe Rais wa Jamhuri yetu ya Kenya. Na kura akapata, na mimi mpaka wa leo najua ya kwamba yeye ndiye alishinda hiyo kura,” Kenyatta said, meaning that he and others had done everything to support Odinga and that he still knew Odinga had won.

The remarks have reignited debate over the August 9, 2022 election. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission declared Ruto president-elect with 7,176,141 votes, or 50.49 per cent, against Odinga's 6,942,930 votes, or 48.85 per cent.

The Supreme Court subsequently dismissed the petitions challenging the presidential result and upheld Ruto's election.

Speaking at a press conference in Nairobi, the student representatives said revisiting the disputed election nearly four years later risked reopening political divisions, particularly following the death of Odinga in October 2025.

Student leaders said their response was partly driven by their view that Odinga's political legacy should not be used in renewed political contests.

The student representatives also declared their support for Ruto's administration, saying young people should be allowed to make their own political choices rather than being drawn back into the political contests of 2022.

Sammy Obiero, a student leader at Maseno University, said Kenyatta had served his constitutional terms and should give the current leadership room to work.

“You were given your chance, you led and went. You  should leave those in office to do their job,” Obiero said.

Kisumu universities and colleges association president and also president of Kisumu national polytechnics Silas Adem pointed to changes in student financing, claiming that increased Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) support and the current funding arrangements had improved access to university education.

“Students from vulnerable households now receive HELB and Scholarship as well as upkeep on time. We are ready to support anyone who has the welfare of learners at heart,” he said.

Michael Soi, a University of Nairobi student leader, similarly criticised Kenyatta's decision to revisit the 2022 election, saying the former president should respect the institutions that handled the electoral dispute.