Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo..
On the evening of June 22, 2024, after a busy day of coordinating advocates who were searching for young Kenyans that had disappeared, Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambo was at home trying to rest.
No sooner had she settled in than the LSK hotline started ringing. Someone on the other side said: “Billy the Goat (in reference to a social media user by that name) has been released and is in Muthaiga.”
The LSK president, just four months into her term, then called some of her colleagues as she drove towards the location.
“We found Billy in a catatonic state. He was hungry,” she says.
As Ms Odhiambo and her legal team bought food for Billy at Galito’s. They also recorded a short video that immediately went viral on X.
As she drove home that late Saturday evening, little did she know that it would be the first of many encounters to come.
Over the next six months, she visited dozens of police stations inquiring about illegal arrests, rescuing abducted young Kenyans and speaking to relatives in despair, looking to her as a saviour against state excesses.
When Ms Odhiambo assumed the LSK presidency, she knew what she needed to do to get the it vibrant again and steer it to where it truly belonged. She hit the ground running.
Her campaign was bold, filled with promises to restore LSK’s strong voice, not only for its members but for the public too.
Ms Odhiambo had no illusions about the challenges ahead, but one thing was certain: she had a vision, a plan and the resolve to elevate the standards of advocacy and guide LSK to where it truly belonged.
Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo.
Little did she know that she and other LSK members would literally hit the ground running on the streets of Nairobi four months later. Ms Odhiambo found herself in the midst of the explosive Gen-Z protests against the Finance Bill, 2024.
What began as a defiant stand by young Kenyans quickly escalated into confrontation as security forces responded with brutality.
The crackdown resulted in many deaths, abductions and countless young people being whisked away by security agents.
Kenya was on edge due to arbitrary arrests, illegal detentions and police death squads on the prowl.
Ms Odhiambo’s council and other civil society organisations took the government head-on. She was determined to dismantle what she saw as a threat to the country’s hard-won democratic values.
She quickly earned the respect of many Kenyans by speaking out against extra-judicial killings and fighting to locate, free and represent those arrested or abducted.
Alongside her council members and the civil society, she became a fixture in court corridors and police stations.
Ms Odhiambo took on the police and other state agents, demanding justice for those it had tried to silence.
The street protests might have died down but she is wary of the calm.
During this interview in her office at Ombok and Owuor LLP Advocates, where she is a partner, Ms Odhiambo said it might be the calm before a storm.
She is worried about political repression, police brutality and the evident disregard for the rule of law. The battle may have been won for the day, but the fight is far from over.
Step into Ms Odhiambo’s office and you immediately sense what drives her. Three bold artistic plaques on the shelf catch the eye: “Hustle, Grit and Grind” – a mantra she lives by professionally and personally.
The first plaque defines Hustle as a verb, calling it “the only controllable pillar of success”. It reminds us that effort is always within our power.
The second, Grit, stands firm as a noun, embodying “firmness of mind or spirit and unyielding courage in the face of hardship or danger”.
The final one, Grind, speaks to the relentless pursuit of a goal, describing it as “to do something difficult or perform repetitive tasks to attain a certain goal”.
The three words tell the story of Ms Odhiambo’s life; a fighter, leader and risk-taker.
Though unplanned, she says the Gen-Z demonstrations were an eye-opener and brought to the fore the humanity in Kenyans as they closed ranks to help those arrested, shot or abducted.
“Doctors, journalists – local and international – psychologists and psychiatrists came out to help wherever they could,” she recalls.
Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo before addressing journalists on the growing concerns surrounding the implementation of the National Fertilizer Subsidy Programme at the LSK headquarters in Nairobi on April 22, 2024.
Restaurant owners offered free food and water, and others took tea to the streets.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights and many organisations provided information that helped lawyers track down victims of state brutality.
“Many lawyers kept watch at police stations, while others went to courts, prepared documentation and even took witness statements at no cost,” she says.
Faced with fears and painful reminders that the country was headed back to the dark days of the past, Kenyans contributed money as they fought for the sanctity of the Constitution.
Ms Odhiambo was faced with the fear and a painful reminder that Kenya could be heading to the almost forgotten days of the Nyayo regime. Her phone number had been circulated by the Gen-Z when they were “greeting” MPs and state sympathisers.
The number was shared as one to contact in case of emergency. And as the calls came, it did not matter whatever the time. Not to disturb the rest of the household, she to put her phone on silent mode.
“I had no choice but to respond because some of the calls could be a matter of life and death when one was in the hands of a police force that has no regard for human rights,” she says.
“I felt that our greatest contribution as lawyers, wherever we were, was our professional services.”
The response was overwhelming. Lawyers across the country teamed up to visit police stations and courts to secure the release of those arrested during the demonstrations.
Ms Odhiambo recounts being teargassed for the first time at Central Police Station where she had gone to secure the release of abductees.
“I found people gathered outside the station, with police officers attempting to disperse them. The Officer Commanding Station (OCS) had refused to meet us, insisting that we return after 6pm. I told him we were not in a hurry,” the LSK president says.
But the crowd was inpatient and became defiant with time. She met one officer and told him that it was illegal to hold demonstrators, especially if they had not destroyed property or injured anyone.
“We insisted that police charge or release them,” she says.
At the end of the day, they managed to get most of them freed, though it was unfortunate that Rex Masai was killed.
That same week, Ms Odhiambo returned to Central Police Station to demand the release of others.
She and her team were denied entry, with officers saying the OCS was away. Again, a confrontation ensued and they were pushed back. Police insisted that they were not holding demonstrators.
“We later realised that they would bring them late at night after we had left. This was illegal,” she says.
Ms Odhiambo believes the complete and true stories of those abducted are yet to be told.
“Upon their release, many kept mum, a sign of the trauma they had been exposed to,” she says.
Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo during an interview at the offices of Ombok and Owuor Advocates in Nairobi on March 2, 2024.
Dr Austin Omondi, she says, opted to travel to the village, saying he preferred to die near his mother.
Though most of the abductees released had no physical scars, Ms Odhiambo believes they were psychologically tortured.
The National Police Service and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations have repeatedly denied involvement, but the LSK boss says they were behind it.
“Every time we made public statements on the abductions, young people got released,” she says.
“We we are a country with a history of state-sponsored abductions.”
Given the brutality meted on real and imagined anti-government individuals, did she fear for her life? Ms Odhiambo says though she was a marked person, she did not give much thought to her security.
However, one incident made her have second thoughts. While walking in the streets with other lawyers and the public one day, they noticed two people walking ahead of them.
No one knew them, but the bulge on their waists indicated they were armed. The group immediately organised for vehicles to be driven away in different directions.
“After this, I started being careful of my surroundings,” she says.
One of the strategies she adopted was to constantly be in the glare of the media, where her absence would trigger reactions from citizens.
On the advice of a friend, Ms Odhiambo met LSK Council members “to prepare them for any eventuality”.
Despite the fear for her safety, Ms Odhiambo was more concerned about her family. She speaks with admiration for her husband, who not only held down the fort at home when she was away but accompanied her in the quest for justice.
There were nights he would drive her to police stations, witnessing the anguish, fear and pain of those unlawfully detained. The desperation in their eyes was a harsh reality he could not ignore.
“Over time, he came to understand how much a timely response could mean to those in distress,” she says.
It wasn’t just about legal battles anymore; it was about being there for someone else.
The phone calls were not limited to locals. She received a call from the president of the Law Society of Tanzania, asking her to help when activist Sarungi Tsehai was abducted in Nairobi in broad daylight. Ms Tsehai was later freed following swift action by Ms Odhiambo and other rights groups.
Though the state sees her as a troublemaker, Ms Odhiambo says her decisions have the backing of the LSK Council. When, for instance, she rejected President William Ruto’s appointment as a member of task force to audit Kenya’s debt, the council was behind her.
“The council agreed that the appointment was illegal and was going to attract court cases,” she says, though some colleagues dismissed her as “a girl throwing tantrums”.
Whatever the state’s view of her, Ms Odhiambo believes LSK must stand strong in the face of the disregard for the rule of law.
“How can there be abductions even with the Constitution that has one of the most robust chapters on the Bill of Rights?” she asks.
Ms Odhiambo says the situation has been made worse by the decision by the opposition to join the government.
“Kenyans are losing out on the wealth of oversight. This is why the Auditor-General and Controller of Budget have become stars,” she adds.
LSK, she says, will remain at the forefront of ensuring justice is delivered and that government agencies are held accountable.
That is why the society has taken the government to court on many occasions, including the Adani case, the constitutionality of Section 86 of the Finance Act, 2023, which introduced the Housing Levy, the decision by the government to deploy soldiers on streets during anti-Finance Bill demonstrations, the case against the Inspector-General of Police that led to contempt of court proceedings, and the government directive restricting public advertising in ministries and state agencies to the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation.
The LSK boss says it is time to get things right before the 2027 General Election. She is of the opinion that the Judiciary has lost public trust.
“The Judiciary needs to be seen as a neutral arbiter. If Kenyans do not have trust in the institution, they will turn to the streets,” she says.
According to her, the young people took to the streets because they had lost faith in the courts.
“They were not sure the government would obey court orders,” she adds.
“Questions are being asked about the Chief Justice and the Supreme Court but certain quarters have turned the issue into a tribal argument. This is not good for the institution.”
Given the country’s violent history with elections, she fears the streets will be the only option come 2027.
“We must restore confidence in the Judiciary,” Ms Odhiambo says.
She and her team have put in place structures for the stability of the bar. Thanks to the role of the LSK during the demonstrations, many professional bodies are seeking to partner with and support it.
Her team has also established a robust LSK Secretariat and improved the medical cover for its members, with emphasis on mental health.
Ms Odhiambo says she has taken steps to crack down – with the help of police – on individuals masquerading as advocates.
There has been an increase in cases of rogue colleagues before the LSK Disciplinary Committee during her term as president.
Recently, she initiated a mentorship programme to help inculcate young lawyers (between one and three years). Ms Odhiambo says more is to come.
Borrowing from Hollywood star Lupita Nyong’o’s Your Dreams are Valid, Ms Odhiambo urges women to pursue their dreams. When they dream big, she says, they allow God to help and guide them.
“When I joined the council, I never thought I would be the LSK vice-president or president. Others were more charismatic and had better chances of being elected, yet here I am,” she says.
Though Ms Odhiambo says it is still early to think of life after the LSK presidency, the twinkle in her eyes says otherwise.
“Whether as a politician, I cannot say; but I am ready to serve Kenyans in whatever capacity that God allows me,” she says.
