NAIROBI, Kenya Mar 27 – Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna now appears to have accepted his fate in the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) after his removal as the Secretary General.
Speaking during the People’s National Delegates Convention (NDC) at Ufungamano House in Nairobi, Sifuna suggested he would not fight to retain his position, instead drawing a firm line against serving under what he described as a new leadership lacking credibility.
“You want to tell me I can be Secretary General of Raila Amollo Odinga for eight years and then become the SG of mediocrity? Me? Me?” Sifuna posed.
Sifuna who was ousted by the ODM faction led by party leader Oburu Oginga appeared to have come to terms with his removal even as the divisions within the party worsen.
Sifuna dismissed the leadership linked to Oginga, indicating he would not serve under the new order.
“Oburu, look for your own SG. I cannot be your SG!” he declared to loud applause.
He went further to publicly distance himself from the faction that reportedly engineered his ouster, accusing them of using “backdoor” tactics to take control of party structures.
“This mischief they are doing in Ngong Road, of giving out positions through the back door, there is no ODM member who recognizes those things,” he said.
Even as he signaled his exit, Sifuna remained loyal to ODM leader the late Raila Odinga, describing his tenure as Secretary General as the greatest honor of his political career.
“It has been the honor of my life to serve as Secretary General of probably the greatest politician this country will ever see, Raila Amollo Odinga,” he said.
However, he made it clear that his loyalty does not extend to the current factional leadership taking shape within the party.
“After Baba Raila Amollo Odinga, you characters don’t deserve me,” he added.
The Political Parties Disputes Tribunal on Thursday re-directed Sifuna’s ouster petition to the party’s internal dispute mechanisms arguing the process had not been fully exhausted to warrant its intervention.