Kenya's ex-PM Odinga to be buried on Sunday, honouring his wish of burial within 72 hours of death

The remains of Kenya's former Prime Minister Raila Odinga will be buried on Sunday, October 19, the East African nation's Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has announced.

According to the deputy president, who co-chairs Odinga's funeral committee, the former prime minister had left a will, instructing that he buried within 72 hours of his death.

"The family has informed this committee that it was the wish of the Honourable Raila Odinga to be buried within the shortest time possible following his demise," Kindiki said in a public announcement on Wednesday.

"That timeline is 72 hours. We have therefore agreed on an expedited process that balances his wishes, the family's needs, and the community traditions he cherished," Kindiki added.

'Statesman'

The former prime minister will be laid to rest at his family home in Western Kenya's county of Siaya.

Odinga died aged 80 during treatment at a hospital in southern India's state of Kerala on Wednesday. Doctors said he succumbed to cardiac arrest.

Kenya's President William Ruto, who eulogised Odinga as a "statesman", has declared national mourning, with the country's flag flying at half-mast, until Odinga's burial.