By Anderson Ojwang
The soul of the late Raila Odinga’s party, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), is under attack and in a state of despair at the hands of the very people he trusted in life.
If anything, the party creed is under siege as opportunism and betrayal take centre stage, with Raila’s legacy and ideology of social justice thrown into the political dustbin.
In essence, the theatre of opportunism and betrayal in ODM is aptly captured in Prof Francis Imbuga’s play Betrayal in the City. Similarly, in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, when the centre cannot hold, things begin to fall apart — a path ODM appears to be heading towards.
The Creed
In an explosive interview with Citizen TV, Winnie Odinga let the cat out of the bag as she strongly lamented what she termed as the desecration of the ODM creed.
Winnie first raised the red flag when she stated that ODM was not formed from the comfort of pillow and bedroom talks, but from the streets — fighting for social justice, which Raila stood for.
“I raised the statement out of concern that certain people and certain quarters are trying to achieve something that does not necessarily stand for the creed of the ODM party and perhaps want to take advantage of the situation for their own gain,” she said.
Former ODM Deputy Party Leader Wycliffe Oparanya recently noted that the love of money was destroying the party and leading to decisions that go against its values.
“Lakini nikiona ile inaendelea kwa ODM, na mimi nimekuwa karibu sana na Mhe. Marehemu Raila Amolo Odinga (When I see what is currently happening in the ODM party, and I was very close to the late Raila Amolo Odinga),” he said.
“Ninashangaa sana. Mambo ya pesa yameharibu viongozi. Viongozi wanaenda hapa wanaongea jambo moja, wakitoka wanaongea jingine kwa sababu wamepewa pesa. Vichwa vimechanganyika,” he added.
(I am shocked. Money has destroyed leaders. They say one thing in one place and say the opposite elsewhere because of money. Their minds are confused.)
“Anaongea kwa sababu ya pesa. Haya mambo sijaona wakati wa Marehemu Raila Odinga. Raila alikuwa mtu wa msimamo. Akisema jambo ni hilo,” he said.
(They speak because of money. This was not the case during Raila’s time. Raila was a man of principle.)
“If he wanted to make any concessions, he would consult first,” Oparanya added.
The Constitution
Winnie went ahead to claim that the very vein of the party — the constitution — was being violated and ignored, subsequently undermining its existence.
“The ODM constitution is being violated. People are misrepresenting themselves and moving in a manner that is not respectful to the party creed. They have not acted in a manner that respects the former party leader’s creed,” she said.
She added that no member of the Central Committee or the National Executive Committee (NEC) can act on behalf of ODM unless ratified by the National Delegates Conference (NDC).
“They forced celebrations during the mourning period. They went ahead and misrepresented themselves as being in charge, knowing very well they are not until the NDC is held,” she said.
“They have initiated talks without following procedure. They lack goodwill towards party members and have failed to listen to dissenting voices. The custodian of our constitution is the Secretary General, but people are being told to leave. Some are being de-whipped from their roles. That is not ODM,” she added.
Kisumu Woman Representative Ruth Odinga said party leadership must adhere to the constitution and spirit of the law.
“The Central Management Committee (CMC) sat a few days ago in Kilifi. This is a very important party organ,” she said.
“We do not expect the party chairperson to purport conclusions before listening to the people. ODM is a people’s movement. Our membership stretches from Turkana to Kwale, from Wajir to Isebania,” she added.
Recently, at a CMC meeting held in Kilifi in January 2026, ODM resolved to initiate pre-election coalition talks with President William Ruto’s UDA party, tasking ODM party leader Dr Oburu Odinga to lead the process.
Dr Oburu has since initiated rallies expected to culminate in talks with President Ruto.
Winnie maintained that until the National Delegates Conference is held, the current party leadership remains interim, in line with the ODM constitution.
Betrayal in the City
Raila was betrayed while his body was aboard a Kenya Airways flight in international airspace. Back home, at 6:00 a.m., the party’s Central Committee was meeting to replace him instead of preparing to receive his body.
“The party leader died, yet the leadership did not come to address members to inform us of his death. Instead, they picked a new team,” Winnie said.
“The next day, we woke up to news of new talks. They did not consult us. It seems there is a clique that does things privately, which is not the ODM style,” she added.
“They misrepresented themselves at a time when the party was mourning its leader. They should have informed members and provided direction, but instead they were busy with their own interests,” she said.
MP Caroli Omondi also claimed there was a mysterious hand pulling strings within the party — a move he said was not in ODM’s best interest.
