The late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga was being treated for a blood clot on his head, his elder brother Oburu Odinga has confirmed.

Speaking during an interview at NTV on Sunday, November 2, Oburu relayed that Raila had tried treatment in Kenya, but the medicine was too strong, weakening him.

"He had some clot on his head, and it was being resolved by doctors here in Nairobi, but they were using strong medicine, which was called steroids, which was wearing him down, which is why you saw him pulling out of some public functions," Oburu said.

He relayed that this was also the reason why he had not attended the burial of the former Rongo MP Dalmas Otieno on September 20 and instead sent Oburu to represent him.

Notably, the highly anticipated ODM Party's 20th anniversary, which had been slated for October 10 to October 12, was also postponed around the same time.

As such, the decision was made, mostly by President William Ruto, to have him travel to India for more specialised treatments.

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"When he went to Mumbai, India, they managed to clear the clot. So by the time he left the hospital, he was up and about, and he went to recuperate in Kerala," he said.

Oburu further clarified that the Sreedhareeyam Ayurvedic Eye Hospital and Research Centre, where he collapsed before his death, was a facility his family frequented to recuperate while undergoing traditional treatment.

His trip to India had mainly been made possible by President William Ruto, according to Oburu.

He recalled a meeting the President had had with Raila shortly after he returned from the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), in which he advised that Raila be taken to India for treatment.

"We discussed in detail that there is a condition, and we agreed that he must go there immediately because there were conflicting positions taken by doctors in Dubai and here," he said.

"He (Ruto) even gave his doctor the information to check, and they told us that he needed to go to India, as they had better equipment and could deal with the issue. The President took that matter very seriously."

As such, President Ruto organised transportation to India and within 24 hours, Raila had arrived in India via a private jet and would later successfully receive treatment for the clot.

He especially lauded this swift action by the President, as even though he admits the family could have taken him there eventually, a lot of time could have passed by then.