Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Oburu Oginga has come out guns blazing against ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, after his past interview with Citizen TV exposed a deep rift in the party.
In a statement released on Friday, February 6, Oginga slammed Sifuna over some of the comments made in the interview, stating that it was misleading the party’s supporters and influencing the general discourse around ODM.
Responding to Sifuna, who had questioned the legitimacy of some of the party’s national officials and its organs, Oburu asserted that Sifuna himself was a product of the party’s processes regarding the elections of its officials.
Oburu, the brother of the late former ODM party leader Raila Odinga, seemingly accused Sifuna of having double standards, citing that Sifuna, despite initially ascending to the SG position without the approval of the National Delegates Convention (NDC), did not question the procedure at the time.
“When Sen. 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 Secretary General by the same organ in February 2018 and discharged the functions of that office fully and effectively until February 2022, when the National Delegates Convention subsequently endorsed him. One cannot selectively invalidate the very processes that conferred legitimacy upon oneself,” said Oburu.
During the interview, Sifuna questioned Oburu’s position as party leader, expressing the view that Oburu Oginga’s installation as interim ODM leader violated party rules, saying the party constitution should have allowed one of the deputy leaders to act temporarily and then convened the National Delegates Convention (NDC).
Further, Oburu faulted Sifuna for struggling to distinguish between his personal opinions and official party policy, creating confusion among members and supporters.
''ODM has, since its inception, demonstrated fidelity to its Constitution and to the rule of law. The same principle has put every individual in their rightful position, including that of Sen. Sifuna,'' Oburu stated. ''We want to state categorically that all Party officials are serving substantially and supported by the Party organ resolutions.''
The party leader also criticised Sifuna on contradictory statements made regarding ODM entering into coalition talks with President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA).
According to Oburu, Sifuna had, back in July 2025, on the same public platform, expressed the view that ODM could not afford to wait until 2027 to deliberate on its pre-election strategy but was now questioning the ODM-UDA pre-election coalition talks.
The latest marks the first major public disagreement between Oburu and Sifuna, with the former having shown support towards the Nairobi Senator despite calls for his removal from his SG post.
It remains to be seen how ODM will proceed after Oburu’s outburst, with the party’s leadership wrangles at the full glare of the public.
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