Battle lines drawn as Oburu takes on Sifuna

ODM party leader Oburu Oginga has unleashed his  political claws in a characteristic method rarely associated with party leaders as he threatened his Secretary General Edwin Sifuna over his positions, even as he defended their quest to seal a pre-election pact with President William Ruto’s UDA party.

The party leader who is struggling to steady the ODM ship that is grappling with intense political waves threatening it with a collapse has opted to take critics within the party head-on.

Yesterday’s public statement castigating Sifuna over his recent remarks about the party attracted criticisms from some party supporters, pundits, and party insiders who described Oburu’s actions as an act of ineptitude and an insult to the party’s structures.

They claimed his position commands respect, and he had abused the profile of his office by opting to engage junior leaders in a public spat, instead of utilizing internal party structures to restore order.

In a comprehensive statement, Oburu delved into an interview that Sifuna had with a TV station and sought to dismiss his claims on several issues regarding the party, including how Oburu ascended to the party’s apex.

Oburu dismissed Sifuna’s claims that the party is prematurely negotiating with UDA and claimed that their party is keen to form the next government.

“Let me reiterate, ODM remains united, strong, and anchored in its founding values. Debate is welcome, but it must be responsible and aligned with the party discipline. No, individual, however senior, is above the collective decisions of the party,” said Oburu.

The statement comes barely a few hours before Sifuna and a group of other perceived rebels heads to Busia for a rally dubbed Linda Mwanainchi Tour. The theme is a sharp contrast of what Oburu and his allies are driving to Raila's support. The Oburu-led faction is also leading countrywide rallies dubbed Linda Ground.

According to party insiders, Oburu’s statement is just the beginning of a storm that awaits Sifuna as a section of the party leadership mulls disciplinary actions against him and other perceived rebels. An insider privy to the inner workings of the party told Saturday Standard that the party is seeking to punish Sifuna for allegedly depopularizing the party's positions to supporters.

“Oburu is under pressure from a section of leaders within the party to oversee disciplinary proceedings against Sifuna and other perceived rebels. The statement was meant to remind him that he needs to tone down his rhetoric,” said a senior ODM MP.

The legislator claimed there is a belief that Sifuna is abusing his position as the Secretary General to weaken the party by making statements contradicting Oburu's positions. However, Sifuna is not alone. Others questioning Oburu's leadership and the direction of the party include Deputy Party leader Godfrey Osotsi, Siaya Governor James Orengo, EALA MP Winnie Odinga, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, among others.

Last month, an attempt to kickstart disciplinary proceedings against Sifuna flopped following the intervention of Raila’s widow Ida Odinga. At the time, Migori Senator Eddy Oketch had filed a petition seeking to have Sifuna expelled from the party.

And yesterday, Oburu appeared to lay ground for another disciplinary proceedings as he criticized the Secretary General for his comments.

He claimed that the same process that elevated Sifuna to become the party’s Secretary General is the same process that has ascended him to power, adding that the party’s structures have been supreme.

“When Sifuna questioned the legality of some national officials on the basis that they were elected by the National Governing Council, he overlooked a fundamental fact: he himself was elected by the same organ in February 2018,” said Oburu.

With Oburu now opting to take the internal feuds within the party to the court of public opinions, it remains to be seen the magic wand he will deploy to calm the storms in the party.

His own sister, Ruth Odinga, the Kisumu Woman Representative who is also an official in the party has thrown her weight behind Sifuna’s recent comments and positions.

Taking to her official Facebook page on Thursday, February 5, 2026, Ruth criticised party members who have labelled Sifuna a “rebel” for publicly raising concerns over the management and financing of the party’s recent massive public events.

Ruth also questioned the source of funds being used by the party to organize its Linda Ground rallies across the country.

In the recent rallies that were held in Kisumu, several reliable sources told Saturday Standard that the rally was funded by national government operatives who helped mobilize attendees for the rally in Kondele. 

According to Ruth, the funding of the activities is suspicious and has taken sides with Sifuna in questioning the source of the funds that have seen ODM rallies full of attendees wearing matching party regalia.

“In recent months, Nairobi Senator and ODM Secretary-General Hon. Edwin Sifuna – alongside a group of party members and legislators frequently labeled as ‘rebels’ – has been at the center of a deepening political rift. This friction stems from the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) established between President William Ruto and the late former Prime Minister, Hon. Raila Odinga, in March 2025,” Ruth said.

She believes that the party is being mismanaged and has openly questioned the rush by the party leadership to kickstart pre-election coalition talks with UDA. Just like Sifuna, Ruth claims the process is premature.

 “As a signatory to the ODM account, if he questions where all the money for choppers, big tents, and ODM-branded t-shirts and caps in the ‘Linda Ground’ conventions are coming from, why should anyone abuse him? He admitted on national TV that ODM Party has not spent any coin on the campaigns, which run into millions of shillings. Those with the answers, why can’t you provide them? Are governors funding the campaigns? Are MPs doing it from the CDF kitty? Did we get a philanthropist that a Party SG is not aware of who is funding the clearly expensive public fora? And what is in it for the ‘philanthropist’?” she added.

Yesterday, Oburu's statement attracted pockets of criticism from a section of party members on social media who claimed that he is mismanaging the crisis and cannot steer the party to success.

In his days, the late Raila never answered critics within the party through a press release. Attention now shifts to the parallel rally organized by Sifuna and his allies in Busia.