Raila’s Bodyguard Breaks Silence on 11 Bullets Fired at His Car During 2023 Protests

The Sunday Standard of October 11, 2026 leads with a front page built around a single, jarring claim. Its splash, titled 11 bullets, carries the line that police fired the shots meant to kill Raila.

The paper presents the story under an assassination plot tag and plays it across the whole page, with a large portrait of Raila’s bodyguard, Maurice Ogeta, dominating the layout.

According to the report on Page 4, the bodyguard says that a year before Raila Odinga was accorded a state funeral, his team stared death in the face.

He describes how police unleashed a hail of bullets on the opposition leader’s car during the 2023 protests.

Speaking publicly about the terrifying ordeal for the first time, Ogeta recalls how 11 bullets tore into the vehicle, forcing him and other guards to use their bodies as human shields for their boss. He says he was waiting for his turn to die.

A pull-out on the page carries another chilling detail from his account. He says that when the shots became too much, he heard an officer in charge of security, who was in the front car, say over the walkie-talkie that they had killed Raila.

The paper presents all of this as an alleged attempt on Raila’s life, and readers should treat it as one man’s account of events unless it is backed by independent evidence or official findings.

Still, the story reopens painful questions about police conduct during the 2023 protests and about how far security agencies went in handling opposition leaders at the time.

The timing is also notable. The masthead carries the Kivumbi 2027 banner, counting down 303 days to the General Election.

By placing the story of Raila’s near-death experience at the top of its election coverage, the Standard reminds readers how bitter and dangerous Kenya’s political contests have been, and how much emotion still surrounds Raila’s legacy as the country heads into another campaign season.

The page also carries a story that speaks to a very different kind of struggle. In the national section, a report on Page 2 says many Kenyans are now foregoing meals to keep a roof over their heads, citing the latest report by Habitat for Humanity.

The survey finds that tough times are pushing a majority of Kenyans to choose between rent and food. Together with the lead story, it shows a country dealing with the weight of its political past while many households struggle with the cost of basic needs.

The Sunday Standard has chosen a front page that is emotional, personal and politically charged. Whether the bodyguard’s revelations lead to fresh calls for investigation, or fade into the noise of the election season, will depend on how the police, the government and Raila’s political family respond in the coming days.

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