Moses Kuria, sceptical of Ayurveda’s modern medicine role, the fiery presidential advisor, unleashed a torrent of doubt in a raw social media post that’s ignited a firestorm over Kenya’s flirtation with ancient Indian healing amid the shadow of Raila Odinga’s tragic end.
Moses Kuria, never one to shy from controversy, laid bare his inner turmoil after reports surfaced that the late opposition titan passed during an Ayurvedic retreat in Kochi, India.
“I need a lot of convincing to accept that Ayurvedic is a branch of modern medicine. My heart is burning with rage. But what do I know about medicine other than as a patient? I am willing to be persuaded,” Kuria vented on X, his words slicing through the grief-stricken haze like a surgeon’s scalpel, prompting a deluge of replies from healers, doctors, and everyday Kenyans wrestling with the blend of old wisdom and white-coat science.
The post, timestamped just past midnight, hit like a gut punch in a week still echoing with Odinga’s state funeral fanfare. Kuria, 55 and a Ruto loyalist with a knack for unfiltered takes, tagged it to a thread mourning the “Baba” who championed everything from multiparty democracy to herbal remedies in his later years.
Odinga’s choice of Ayurveda – that 5,000-year-old Indian system rooted in herbs, yoga, and holistic balance – for what aides called a “wellness tune-up” has become a flashpoint.
Whispers from Kisumu clinics suggest he sought relief from chronic joint woes, but sceptics now finger it as a fatal detour from “proven” protocols. “Rage? That’s grief talking, but it’s real,” one follower shot back, sharing scans of turmeric-laced teas that eased her rheumatoid gripes without a single pill. Kuria’s outburst taps a vein in Kenya’s healthcare crossroads, where Western pharma giants rub shoulders with Maasai bark brews and now, Ayurvedic imports via Nairobi’s swanky spas.
Yet the rage resonates. Odinga’s Kochi clinic, a serene Kerala haven touting Panchakarma detoxes, now faces armchair audits: Was it licensed? Did it mesh with his cardiology history?
As Kenya buries its agitator amid whispers of what-ifs – modern scans or mystic massages? – It spotlights a broader quest: can ancient elixirs earn a seat at the evidence table without scorching the bridge?
For now, the advisor’s open plea hangs like incense smoke, inviting experts from Ayurveda hubs like Jamnagar to weigh in. Will persuasion quench the rage or fuel a fiercer fusion? In the hustler’s republic, even medicine’s a battlefield worth the debate.