ODM quits Nasa, out to seek new partners

By , K24 Digital
On Thu, 29 Jul, 2021 16:06 | < 1 min read
ODM leader Raila Odinga (centre) with party secretary-general Edwin Sifuna (left) and Makadara MP George Aladwa. PHOTO/COURTESY

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party is officially out of the National Super Alliance (NASA).

In a statement on Thursday, July 29, ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna said that the party had officially made a decision to alight the Nasa ship.

Nasa is the coalition that houses three other parties; Wiper headed by Kalonzo Musyoka, Amani National Congress (ANC) headed by Musalia Mudavadi, Ford Kenya headed by Moses Wetangula and Chama Cha Mashinani headed by Isaac Ruto.

It is in the coalition that Raila Odinga came into agreement and contested for the presidential post in the 2017 General elections.

In his statement, Sifuna said that ODM was officially out of Nasa and that the party was out to seek new friends ahead of the next General elections.

“We are out on a programme to build new partnerships and extend the ongoing talks with our potential partners to the grassroots level,” Sifuna said.

Sifuna has been under fierce criticism by other Nasa partners especially on how they would share ksh308 million it received curtesy of parliamentary votes.

This saw the coalition ball into issues over mistrust of the funds and how they could be shared amongst the four parties.

Sifuna maintained that the ODM party had not released any funds to the other coalition partners dismissing reports that there was such a deal.

According to him, reports that ODM had given out the money to woo the Nasa partners to stick together were far-fetched.

“To this end, regional meetings and engagements have been planned with like-minded parties,” he said.

In its agreement ahead of the 2017 General elections, the coalition ceases to exist if at least three parties formally quit.

Early this week, Wiper made the first move and announced that it had quit the Nasa coalition.