LINDA Party Claims Name as Sifuna’s Linda Mwananchi Registration Battle Escalates

A dispute over the “LINDA” name has intensified after the Liberty National Democratic Alliance Party claimed ownership of the identity, as Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s Linda Mwananchi movement challenges the rejection of its bid to register as a political party.

The political row over the LINDA name has taken a new turn, with the Liberty National Democratic Alliance (LINDA) Party warning the Edwin Sifuna-led Linda Mwananchi movement against using its name, identity and symbols.

LINDA party leader Phenasio Thuku said his political outfit began its registration process in 2024 and has already secured approval for its proposed name and key registration documents.

Speaking at the party's headquarters in Kiambu, Thuku maintained that his group has a legitimate claim to the LINDA identity and warned that it would take legal action if another political outfit continued using the name.

“Our name has been approved. Our manifesto, ideology, party constitution and nomination rules have all been approved,” Thuku has previously said, adding that the party was on course for full registration.

The latest dispute comes as Sifuna and his allies challenge the decision by the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) to block their efforts to reserve the name Linda Mwananchi Movement (LMM).

Sifuna faction takes fight to tribunal

The Linda Mwananchi movement has moved to the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal after the Registrar rejected its attempt to reserve the name.

The Tribunal has certified the case as urgent and directed the Registrar to respond to the application. The applicants include Pauline Njoki Njoroge, former Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo and Suba South MP Caroli Omondi. They say they applied on June 4, 2026, to reserve the name Linda Mwananchi Movement.

The applicants say the Registrar initially rejected the name on public-interest grounds but later agreed to reconsider the decision following discussions before reversing the position after the emergence of the Liberty National Democratic Alliance.

The Linda Mwananchi side is seeking orders preventing the Registrar from processing or registering LINDA, Linda Mwananchi or similar names for another individual or organisation while the dispute is being determined.

Rival claims over LINDA

Thuku's group, however, says it has been pursuing the LINDA identity long before the current political dispute involving Sifuna and his allies.

Reports from earlier this month said the Liberty National Democratic Alliance had received approval for its proposed name, manifesto, ideology, constitution and nomination rules, putting it on the path towards full registration.

Thuku has also sought to distance his party from the Linda Mwananchi movement, saying the two are separate political entities.

LINDA officials have further rejected any association with activities carried out under the Linda Mwananchi banner, saying their party should not be blamed for or associated with the movement's political activities.

The dispute is now increasingly centred on whether the similarity between LINDA and Linda Mwananchi creates a legal barrier to Sifuna's political vehicle.

A political battle ahead of 2027

The timing of the dispute is significant as Sifuna and his allies seek to transform Linda Mwananchi from a political movement into a formal party ahead of the 2027 General Election.

The movement has been associated with Sifuna, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Siaya Governor James Orengo, Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi and other opposition figures. The leaders had previously opposed an attempt by Charles Wanyonyi to register a party using the Linda Mwananchi name, arguing that they had not authorised the application.

The Registrar subsequently rejected that application, saying the proposed name closely resembled other protected names and slogans and raised public-interest concerns.

The emergence of the Liberty National Democratic Alliance has consequently opened a fresh front in the registration battle.

For Sifuna's faction, the issue is about securing the political identity it has built around the Linda Mwananchi slogan. For Thuku's outfit, the argument is that LINDA is an identity it began pursuing earlier and has already taken through the registration process.

The matter is now before the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal, setting the stage for a legal determination that could have significant consequences for both groups as they seek to establish political parties ahead of the 2027 polls