Will the wrangles in the ODM ever end? Just a few hours after solving the mess at Nairobi County, the ODM party is again embroiled in another battle of supremacy and this time it is in the Lakeside county of Kisumu.
Kisumu County Assembly MCAs on Wednesday rejected a letter purportedly written by ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna stopping any plans to change the house leadership membership.
Acting Speaker Victor Rodgers read out the letter allegedly from Sifuna directing the MCAs halt the changes until a meeting to be chaired by Sifuna himself is done.
The MCAs though went against that directive and vowed to go on with the house elections of new Majority leader, deputy minority leader, chief whip and members to sit in the County Assembly Service Board.
The MCAs, who were displeased by the said letter demanded to know why Sifuna directed it to the Speaker Onyango Oloo instead of the assembly leadership led by Majority leader and the Chief whip.
South East Nyakach MCA Johnson Guya trashed the letter saying it was collusion from individuals who do not want changes in the house leadership adding the MCAs had unanimously agreed to make changes as a way of ending constant wrangling after meeting ODM party leader Raila Odinga.
This happened just a day after Sifuna issued a statement reinstating Peter Imwatok and Elias Otieno, who had been replaced as minority whip and minority leader respectively at tha Nairobi County Assembly.
The Kisumu MCAs have lately been on an unruly spree. The MCAs have engaged in public fights that have even attracted the attention of the general public including that of ODM party leader Raila Odinga.
He was forced to hold a closed-door meeting with Kisumu Members of County Assembly (MCAs) and is said to have read the riot act them.
Odinga asked the county lawmakers to engage in sober debates, further imploring them to make use of internal channels of resolving their disputes through the House leadership.
During the meeting, Kisumu County ODM Chairman Ayiecho Olweny tabled a report that reportedly put Speaker Onyango Oloo on the spot over his management skills in the Assembly.
Are ODM MCAs and part of the ODM leadership undermining Edwin Sifuna’s authority?