Kenya Stockholm Blog

In the wake of General Francis Omondi Ogolla’s tragic death in a helicopter crash, the mournful atmosphere of his funerals in Nairobi and his home village was palpably tinged with controversy. His son, Joel Rabuku, became the focal point of a profound cultural clash, highlighting the tension between traditional Luo mourning customs and his modern, seemingly detached demeanor. This discord illustrates not just a family in mourning but a community grappling with the integration of modern attitudes into deeply entrenched cultural practices.

Joel Rabuku’s approach to his father’s death was unorthodox by the standards of the Luo community, which holds the dead in great reverence. In urging mourners not to cry but to celebrate the life of General Ogolla, Joel appeared to embody a progressive stance on handling grief—viewing it as a celebration of life rather than a somber and lugubrious episode. His description of his father’s body as “just a body” struck many as a profound disrespect, clashing with the Luo belief that the dead must be treated with utmost care to avoid spiritual repercussions.

The controversies didn’t end with perceptions of disrespect. Joel’s statements about the nonexistent rivalry between his father and President William Ruto—asserting their “good working chemistry”—came across as particularly insensitive. In a community where many believed General Ogolla might have been a victim of political assassination, Joel’s narrative was hard to swallow. It seemed to whitewash the speculative tensions swirling around his father’s untimely death, further alienating him from those who felt the government might have been complicit. This prompted Dr. Oburu Odinga, Raila Odinga’s elder brother who spoke at the funeral, to remind the young Joel to take it easy and allow his father’s death to be investigated.

Adding fuel to the fire, Joel took active part in lowering his father into the grave, a role traditionally reserved for close family acquaintances but not necessarily the immediate family members who are expected to remain calm and collected at the graveyard. This act was perceived not just as a breach of protocol but as a direct affront to the community’s way of honoring their dead—a duty steeped in ritual significance, believed to facilitate a peaceful transition for the spirit of the deceased.

In fact, Joel Rabuku’s impromptu descent into his father’s grave has precipitated a profound cultural debate within the Luo community. This is further compounded by his failure to feed mourners at the funeral—a severe deviation from the sacrosanct customs surrounding Luo funerals. These actions have not only marred the solemn rites but have also raised alarms about potential spiritual repercussions.

According to Luo beliefs, such deviations can lead to “chira,” a debilitating curse that afflicts those who transgress against the deeply rooted customs. To ward off this ominous threat and cleanse himself of any spectral malevolence, it has been suggested that Joel may need to partake in an ancient ritual involving drinking of “manyasi,” a mystical concoction renowned for its purgative powers.

Worse still, the gravity of Joel’s actions and the subsequent cultural dissonance is fueling discussions about a remedial alternative funeral ceremony—an attempt to weave back together the frayed cultural fabric without the need to exhume General Ogolla’s remains. Such an artificial ceremony would purportedly serve, not just as a corrective measure but as a crucial bridge to restore communal harmony and reaffirm the sacred traditions that define the Luo’s engagement with the cycle of life and death. Such a step would underscore the community’s resilience and its commitment to uphold its heritage, ensuring that the bonds between the living and their ancestors remain unbroken, even in the face of modern challenges.

Interplay Between Modern Individualism and Traditional Communal Values

Joel’s critical stance on the role of media and bloggers in the reporting of his father’s death further exemplified his confrontational approach to traditional norms. In criticizing those who reported his father’s death before an official announcement, Joel ventured into a contentious debate about freedom of speech, inadvertently casting himself as a censor, a role that did little to endear him to a grieving public and media advocates alike.

Moreover, Joel’s promises to continue his father’s legacy by undertaking various development projects in his home village were met with skepticism. These initiatives, which included rehabilitating schools and building churches, were seen as empty promises by those who doubted his political influence or financial capability to fulfill these commitments. The perception is that he will be dumped by the Ruto government as soon as his usefulness is depleted. To many, development talks were viewed as superficial gestures that failed to resonate with the immediate needs and expectations of the community.

The funeral itself turned into a display of cultural deviation as traditional Luo mourning customs were conspicuously bypassed. Close relatives, including General Ogolla’s father, were notably distanced from the grave during the burial—a break from the communal participation typically observed. General Ogolla’s father was not allowed to perform the symbolic act of throwing soil into his son’s grave, a critical part of the Luo burial rite that signifies a final farewell. This exclusion was not just a breach of protocol but an indication of the deep fractures within the family, exacerbated by Joel’s handling of the event.

Allegations that Joel was not truly Luo—fueled by rumors of his adoption from the Democratic Republic of Congo—surfaced, questioning his understanding and respect for Luo traditions. This speculation was compounded by the fact that General Ogolla had not married within the Luo community, which some interpreted as an abandonment of cultural ties, responsible for his son’s apparent lack of cultural fluency.

The situation encapsulated in Joel Rabuku’s handling of his father’s funeral ceremonies offers a vivid interplay between modern individualism and traditional communal values. His actions, seen as transgressions against cultural norms, not only sparked controversy but also prompted a broader discourse on identity, respect, and the complexities of cultural preservation in the face of globalization and change.

As the Luo community reflects on these events, the challenge remains: how to honor traditions while accommodating the inevitable transformations of an increasingly interconnected world. Joel’s story is an absurd reminder of the delicate balance between respecting the weight of tradition and embracing personal expressions of grief and remembrance. As he mourned his father in his own style, he, at the same time, appears to have lowered his self esteem in the eyes of hawk-eyed Luo traditionalists who are unlikely to forgive him for his massive cultural disconnect during the burial of an important Luo in government.

Okoth Osewe