NAIROBI, Kenya Mar 26 – The deepening cracks within the Orange Democratic Movement will be laid bare on Friday as two rival factions hold parallel high-stakes meetings in Nairobi, just kilometers apart.
On one side, the party’s official leadership will proceed with the Special Delegates Conference (SDC) at the ASK Jamhuri Grounds after getting the green light from the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal.
On the other, a rival faction aligned to embattled Secretary General Edwin Sifuna will hold a parallel “People’s National Delegates Conference” at Ufungamano House.
The two venues are just about eight kilometres apart.
The tribunal on Thursday dismissed a case filed by Sifuna, ruling that he failed to first use the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanisms.
“The Tribunal struck out the complaint for failure to invoke the Party’s Internal Dispute Resolution Mechanism,” ODM said in a statement.
In a second case, the tribunal also declined to stop key party resolutions, effectively allowing the SDC to proceed.
“Public interest favours uninterrupted internal party process,” the tribunal ruled.
ODM welcomed the decision, saying it clears the way for its meeting.
“Consequently, the resolutions remain in force and the Special Delegates Conference will go on as planned,” the party said.
Even with the ruling, the split within ODM appears far from resolved.
A faction led by Oburu Oginga under the “ODM Linda Ground” banner is backing the broad-based government and President William Ruto’s 2027 re-election bid.
At the same time, the “ODM Linda Mwananchi” camp led by Sifuna is pushing back, organizing its own parallel meeting in what it calls a “People’s NDC.”
The rival camp has invited supporters to Ufungamano House from 9:00am, directly clashing with the official SDC.
The parallel meetings are expected to deepen confusion among ODM supporters, many of whom are already split along factional lines.
“All affiliates of ODM took part in the elections and respect internal processes,” the party said, dismissing ongoing disputes.
But the rival camp appears determined to press on, signalling a widening fallout that could reshape the party’s future even as hopes of reconciliation appear slim.