"SIFUNA IS RIGHT TO SPEAK"- RAILA BACKS SG

ODM leader Raila Odinga has thrown his weight behind Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, following a wave of criticism over Sifuna’s recent comments on the ongoing political arrangement between ODM and UDA.

Addressing supporters in Kakamega on Friday, Raila made it clear that Sifuna, like any other member of the Orange Democratic Movement, is entitled to voice his opinions.

“If Sifuna has spoken, he has every right to do so. If you disagree with him, say your piece too,” Raila said, emphasizing the need for open dialogue and tolerance of dissent within the party.

He reiterated that ODM remains a democratic outfit, and that freedom of speech is not only welcomed but protected. “I have never told anyone in ODM how they should speak. Even if someone says Baba is old and should go back to Bondo, I have no problem with that; it is the people who will decide,” he added.

Raila clarified that while members are free to express personal views in public, official party positions must be decided through the party’s established internal structures. “Sifuna’s comments, like any other member’s, will be discussed in our party organs. That is where we respond and build consensus,” he said.

The former Prime Minister also reaffirmed ODM’s commitment to internal dialogue, especially amid shifting dynamics surrounding the broad-based political deal with the government. “We’ll sit down, assess what has been implemented, and agree on the way forward together,” he stated.

Sifuna, speaking during a recent television interview, had declared the ODM–UDA agreement "dead," citing what he described as ongoing police brutality, particularly the death of blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang while in custody on June 8.

According to Sifuna, the Memorandum of Understanding had been anchored on two main pillars: the protection of lives and the upholding of democracy. While acknowledging that democratic processes were still intact, he lamented that innocent lives continued to be lost — rendering the agreement ineffective.

"On the day Albert Ojwang dies in a police cell, for me, this agreement is dead,” Sifuna stated during the interview.

He further rejected a proposal to serve on a review team tasked with assessing the deal, bluntly remarking, “I am not a mortician,” and went on to argue that unseating President William Ruto had now become a national imperative".

Sifuna's remarks attracted a spree of attacks from other ODM affiliated leaders, the treasury CS John Mbadi terming his words as disrespectful to the party's hierarchical ranks and leadership. Suna East MP Junet Mohammed also followed suit declaring that only Raila has the power of declaring the MOU dead, not Sifuna.