Raila ‘sidelines’ allies to stem dissent in party

ODM party leader Raila Odinga has realigned the composition of his political inner circle, sidelining some of his old allies in a new arrangement that is already ruffling feathers.

The Sunday Nation has established that the advisers, dubbed the “rapid response team” (RR) tasked with helping Mr Odinga deal with the increasing number of rebels, is made up mostly of first time MPs.

Some of the notable RR members are Busia Woman Representative Florence Mutua, John Mbadi (Suba), Junet Mohamed (Suna East), Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja), Abdikadir Aden (Balambala), Timothy Bosire (Kitutu Masaba), Tom Kajwang’ (Ruaraka), Andrew Toboso (Butere), Fred Outa (Nyando) and Joyce Lay, the Taita Taveta Woman Representative.

The team meets at least twice a week. The membership list is similar to that of “team Zani”, a term coined after a group of MPs who gravitated towards nominated Senator Agnes Zani who was vying for the position of ODM secretary-general in the party’s botched February 28 polls. 

Many in the party believe this was the faction favoured by Mr Odinga over the rival camp led by Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba who was also eyeing the seat.

EDGED OUT

Sunday Nation has learnt that most of the seasoned politicians like James Orengo, Jakoyo Midiwo and secretary- general Anyang’ Nyong’o who have had Mr Odinga’s ear for the last one decade have been edged out.

The three are some of the party honchos accused of not doing enough to keep President William Ruto and UDF leader Musalia Mudavadi in the fold in the months to the last General Election, exposing the party’s soft underbelly in the vote last year.

We also learnt that it is the same RR that recommended the removal of four MPs from House committees in a meeting on November 12 at Mr Odinga’s office in Upper Hill.

MPs Dalmas Otieno (Rongo), Ken Obura (Kisumu Central), Samuel Arama (Nakuru Town West) and Zainab Chidzuga (Kwale) have all been relieved of their duties in a number of committees after the party wrote to National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi  informing him of the changes. The four are accused of “flirting” with the government.

Mr Obura‘s woes in the party are said to have begun early this year when he rallied a number of young ODM MPs from Nyanza to demand change in the party’s leadership structures.

SYCOPHANTS

Some of his colleagues told Sunday Nation it is his latest reference to the RR squad as sycophants that saw him kicked off the Defence and Foreign relations as well as Welfare committees, something he confirmed.

“Wandayi and Mbadi have never forgiven me from the day I said they are sycophants. I asked them to advise the party leader on real issues and not these trivialities of who is a mole or not,” Mr Obura said.

But in a strongly worded response, Mr Wandayi describes his Kisumu Central colleague as a ‘minnow’ who neither understands what ODM  seeks to achieve nor knows how far they have come as far as liberating the country from bad governance goes.

“I don’t play in the same league with Obura for him to call me a sycophant. I have been in this game longer than him despite the fact that we are all first time MPs. His understanding of what we stand for is also shallow,” he charged.

Observers and political rivals alike will be watching to see if Mr Odinga’s new ‘potent charm’ works in his interest or boomerangs on him as all key players in the political arena readies their troops ahead of 2017.