New Delhi, Oct. 16 -- Raila Odinga, a former prime minister of Kenya, died on Wednesday in India, where he was traveling when he suffered a heart attack.

While he never became president of his East African country - he sought the presidency five times over three decades - he was a larger-than-life figure in Kenyan politics and a revered statesman in the region.

Odinga's followers affectionately called him Baba, a Kiswahili honorific usually reserved for a beloved father figure. Here are some tributes to Odinga, who was 80.

"Raila Odinga was a towering figure in Kenya's political life and a steadfast champion of democracy, good governance, and people-centered development. His decades-long commitment to justice, pluralism, and democratic...