- The Member of Parliament for Embakasi East, Babu Owino, has denied claims that he is targeting the position of secretary general of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), insisting that he will only be satisfied with the position of the leader of the party.
- He dismissed the fake advertisement that was pushing him to occupy the position, noting that Edwin Sifuna is still the legitimate general secretary
- ODM leader, Oburu Oginga, also denied the publication, calling it false and explaining that there has never been such an announcement.
Member of Parliament for Embakasi East, Babu Owino, has clearly stated that he does not want to serve as ODM secretary general.
Source: Facebook
He said he aims to be the leader of the 20-year-old party.
The politician was referring to a fake newspaper advertisement circulated on Thursday, March 19, claiming that the party had appointed him as the new general secretary following the removal of the Nairobi senator, Edwin Sifuna.
According to the publication, the leader of the party, Oburu Oginga, was the one who approved the change, while the member of the East African Parliament (EALA), Babu Owino, was mentioned to be given the position of deputy leader of the party, and the Member of Parliament for Saboti, Caleb Amisi, was reinstated in the National Central Committee (NEC) as planning secretary.
However, Owino insisted that he will not run for any position below the party leader.
“I want to be the Party Leader, not the General Secretary. The General Secretary is still Edwin Sifuna,” he said.
At the same time, party leader Oburu Oginga denied the statement saying he did not approve of the change.
He added that there was no official party communication published in any newspaper that day.
“This publication is false! As the ODM leader, I have not given such information, and no such content appeared in any newspaper,” he said.
On the other hand, Daily Nationthe newspaper which allegedly published the advertisement, denied it and noted that it did not publish any ODM information in its March 19 edition.
Babu Owino is associated with a rebel wing within ODM that has been opposing Oburu’s leadership since he took over the leadership of the party.
The group claims that Oburu’s wing has been bought by the President William Rutosaying he plans to control the party.
On the other hand, Oburu’s supporters, including Gladys Wanga, Abdulswamad Nassir, Simba Arati, and Junet Mohamed, have vowed to stand firmly behind the current leader of the party.
The rebels have vowed to respond to the blows, claiming that supporters of the coalition government are being used to divide the party.
However, Sifuna’s wing is also being accused by their opponents of allegedly being funded by the former president, Uhuru Kenyatta.
Much of the tension now centers on the National Delegates’ Conference (NDC) scheduled for March 27 and convened by Oburu, which the rebels have called illegal and vowed to boycott.
ODM’s acting general secretary, Catherine Omanyo, announced the details of the meeting through newspapers, listing the participants and the agenda of the meeting.
However, the rebels opposed the plan insisting that the meeting was convened illegally.
The governor of Siaya, James Orengo, claimed that Omanyo does not have the authority to release the communication, questioning the legitimacy of his position after being appointed by the NEC to hold the position of secretary general for a while after the removal of Sifuna.
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