Editor's Review

  • Earlier this week, reports emerged indicating that over thousand members and officials allegedly from the UDA party decamped to ODM.

The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Party has dismissed media reports indicating that over 1,000 of its alleged members and officials from Kisii County recently defected to ODM Party.

Earlier this week, reports emerged indicating that over thousand members and officials allegedly from the UDA party decamped to ODM and vowed to support former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta’s handshake partnership.

The group also reportedly pledged to rally behind Interior CS Dr Fred Matiang’i in whatever route he decides to undertake in the coming months.

Responding to the reports, UDA through its National Treasurer Omingo Magara downplayed the said defection, arguing that it is yet to elect any officials, therefore the reports are incorrect.

Speaking to Nation, Magara claimed that their opponents were using the reports to create an impression that Deputy President William Ruto is losing ground in Kisii, but that is inaccurate.


UDA National Treasurer Omingo Magara. [Photo: Courtesy]

"UDA has not held grassroots elections to fill party position. Therefore those who are masquerading to be officials from the sub-counties and defecting were defections from positions they never held.

“To the contrary, the movement is fine. We are focused, determined and have a direction to follow and have no laxity of turning back and our eyes are facing the ball to deliver our country and community to prosperity using the bottoms-up approach,” Magara was quoted.

Meanwhile, the country is currently in the ‘defection window’ where politicians are moving from one party to the other in preparation for the 2022 elections.

Some of the major moves so far include Governor Anne Waiguru from Jubilee to UDA and Nominated MP Wilson Sossion from ODM also to UDA.