A fresh war of words has broken out inside the Orange Democratic Movement, with party leader Oburu Odinga issuing a sharp response to Secretary General Edwin Sifuna following remarks made during a recent Citizen TV interview.
In a strongly worded letter released on Friday, Oburu accused Sifuna of blurring the line between personal views and official party positions, warning that such conduct risks confusing ODM members and supporters.
“No one is bigger than the party,” Oburu said, as he pushed back against claims that the current party leadership is not properly in office.
The Siaya Senator took particular issue with Sifuna’s suggestion that Oburu was not validly elected, insisting that all serving officials are in office with the backing of party organs.
“ODM has, since its inception, remained faithful to its Constitution and the rule of law,” Oburu wrote. “That same process has placed every individual where they belong, including Senator Sifuna. All party officials are serving substantially and with the authority of party resolutions.”
Oburu also accused the Secretary General of inconsistency, noting that Sifuna himself previously served in the same role before receiving endorsement from the National Delegates Convention (NDC).
“When Sifuna questioned the legality of officials elected by the National Governing Council, he ignored a basic fact,” Oburu said. “He was elected Secretary General by that very organ in February 2018 and served fully until the NDC later endorsed him in 2022.”
Despite the sharp tone, Oburu did not say whether disciplinary action was being considered. That silence comes as internal disagreements within ODM continue to widen.
At the centre of the dispute is the party’s political direction. One camp, aligned with Sifuna, argues that ODM should maintain independence and resist closer ties with the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA). Another faction believes cooperation with the government could bring political and development gains.
Sifuna, for his part, has stood his ground. He has ruled out resigning and has raised concerns about alleged government funding of ODM, which he says would breach the law. He maintains that only a delegates’ conference has the authority to remove him from office.
“My membership in ODM is intact,” Sifuna has said previously. “If the party needs direction, then a delegates’ conference should be convened.”
On Thursday, the debate took another turn when Ruth Odinga, Oburu’s sister and the Kisumu Woman Representative, came out in defence of Sifuna.
In a statement, Ruth questioned why the Secretary General was being labelled a rebel for voicing concerns about a proposed pre-election agreement between ODM and UDA.
“If indeed he is a ‘rebel’, then how many times was Raila Odinga one?” she asked. “Even in the ‘nusu mkate’ government, Raila still stood his ground.”
She also challenged criticism of Sifuna’s public comments on the party’s memorandum of understanding with the government.
“If the MoU has not been honoured, and it has less than 30 days to expiry, what is so ‘treasonous’ about declaring it obsolete?” Ruth said.
As senior figures trade public statements, the divisions inside ODM are becoming harder to ignore. Whether the party can steady itself before the next election cycle now appears to be the bigger question.