Why Babu Owinon is failing to succeed RAILA as Luo kingpin

 A Brotherly Note to Babu Owino

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By Joshua O.  Nyamori 

In every generation, a few young leaders rise with fire in their voices and courage in their veins. They defy power, electrify crowds, and declare that the future belongs to them. Babu Owino is one such figure. His brilliance, his energy, his ability to command his generation’s imagination are undeniable. He is gifted, a bright star with the potential to inspire and to lead.

But, my younger brother, potential is a double-edged gift. It can blossom into destiny, or collapse into ruin under the glare of the stage. Kenya has walked this road before. Fiery student leaders once stood where you stand today - rising fast, grabbing headlines, only to fade into the margins of history. Their voices echo still, not as legacies, but as cautionary tales.

This is not dismissal. It is a plea. You stand at a dangerous crossroads. GPO Oulu, Joseph Kioko, Moses Oburu, Hassan Omar Hassan, Fwamba Nc. Fwamba, Oscar Omoke, Karl Marx Owiro, Kabando wa Kabando, David Osiany, Karl Marx Owiro CC, Governor Cecily Mbarire, Cyprian Nyamwamu, Willis Memo, Ochieng Tix, Ochieng Kanyadudi, Mwandawiro Mghanga, Tito Andugosi, Suba Churchill, Wafula Buke and even yours truly - all once carried the torch you now hold, at different levels. Even towering figures like James Orengo and Anyang’ Nyong’o were once tested in this same crucible. Some transformed their fire into purposeful leadership. Others were swallowed by the very chaos they commanded. Each has a story to tell - of triumph, of mistakes, of redemption. Seek their counsel, brother. Learn from their scars as much as from their victories.

Kenya is changing. The age when chaos could buy political currency is passing. Disorder may once have drawn attention, but it cannot create jobs or put food on the table for the youthful crowd you are driving into frenzy. The future belongs to those who choose discipline over drama, dialogue over disruption, and dignity over violence. True leadership is not measured by how loudly one shouts, but by how wisely one guides.

Brother Babu, I write not with malice, but with care. Many see in you the possibility of greatness, beyond your current platform. But they also see the shadow of self-destruction if you remain surrounded by those who cheer the spectacle but ignore its cost.

And to your supporters, I dare say: blind applause can be as dangerous as open hostility. Urging a leader towards chaos may thrill for a moment, but it risks consuming him, and you, with equal force. If you truly love him, guide him towards growth, not ruin.

The stage is already his. The question is: will Babu Owino etch his name in gold - or let it scatter, forgotten, into dust?

"It is praiseworthy to be brave and fearless, my son, but sometimes it is better to be a coward. We often stand in the compound of a coward to point at the ruins where a brave man used to live. The man who has never submitted to anything will soon submit to the burial mat." 

- Chinua Achebe, Arrow of God