ODM secretary general Edwin Sifuna when he paid a courtesy call on Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir at his office on July 29, 2025. /EDWIN SIFUNA/XODM secretary general Edwin Sifuna is increasingly finding himself isolated as the Raila Odinga-led party doubles down on its support for the Kenya Kwanza administration.
On Tuesday, the party’s top brass resolved to continue cooperating with President William Ruto’s government, despite Sifuna’s public declaration that the March 7 MoU with UDA was “dead.”
In a striking irony, Sifuna—despite his vocal opposition to the pact—was the one tasked with reading out the party’s official resolution reaffirming support for the Ruto administration.
“After frank and open deliberations, the committee adopted that the party supports the position of party leader Raila Odinga to work with the Kenya Kwanza administration to stabilise the country and create an enabling environment for Kenyans to address their concerns through democratic and constitutional means,” Sifuna said during the briefing.
He acknowledged internal tensions within ODM, noting that the decision was made in the best interest of both party supporters and the nation, even as members held “different viewpoints on many issues within the party and the country.”
Commenting on the political tightrope Sifuna now walks, city lawyer Nelson Havi remarked, “Edwin Sifuna’s job is as difficult as making your own coffin, digging your own grave and forcing yourself into both, but he is up to the task. He will get the job done.”
Sifuna has been a consistent critic of the ODM-UDA alliance, warning that it could erode the party’s standing as a people’s champion and jeopardise its prospects beyond the 2027 elections.
Raila, however, remains firmly committed to the cooperation deal with Ruto—at least until after the next general election.
Sifuna recently threatened to step down if the party backs Ruto’s re-election bid.
During a July 24 interview on Citizen TV, he said, “The only reason I haven’t resigned is because there’s still some glimmer of hope that my party will eventually see the merger as untenable. If the party decides to go ahead with the merger in 2027, then I will have no option but to resign as SG.”
While Raila defended Sifuna in the wake of mounting criticism from within the party, saying he welcomes divergent opinions, some Raila loyalists have since issued a blunt warning to the Nairobi senator: toe the line or ship out.
