ODM identifies 15 key pillars in its manifesto

By Geoffrey Mosoku and Jacob Ng’etich

Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s ODM party has identified 15 key pillars in its manifesto unveiled at the Moi International Sports Centre gymnasium Kasarani.

Top on the party’s agenda reforming institutions of governance, empowering citizens through devolution, ensuring economic growth and stability, investing in infrastructure, promoting equality and social justice, guaranteeing universal access to health and reforming agriculture, livestock industries and fisheries.

Others include saving environment and natural resources, ensuring universal quality education land reforms investing in research, since, technology and innovation, accelerating growth through ICT, improving access to water and sanitation deepening EAC integration of Pan Africanism and finally pursuing a progressive foreign policy.

On equality and social justice, ODM says that when people are treated equally and there is equity in the distribution of national resources, the country shall finally be able to send ethnicity to the place where it belongs – the museum of curiosities of human history.

Raila’s party’s says it is determined to move forward in creating an enabling business environment. It says the party plans to ensure all working Kenyans receive remuneration commensurate with the contribution they are making to nation-building.

The Orange party says it intends to invest in rural and cottage industries and to foster transformation through a good-neighbour system, so that community efforts help each and every person to build his or her house, to plough his or her land, to reap in good time whatever has been sowed.

The party says it shall reform the Kenya Industrial Estates to establish incubation centres in each county, so that people can acquire locally the skills they need to get jobs and focus education and training systems to be more responsive to industry’s needs.

And for the marginalised communities, the ODM Government will provide funds for enterprise development among marginalised communities and disadvantaged groups, including those living with disabilities and the differently-abled.

Skills development

“Invest in business skills development among the youth and women, and then offer grants – not loans – that will provide the start-up capital to establish viable livelihoods.”

On water, the manifesto says the party will develop an integrated water resource management framework for domestic use, animal husbandry and irrigation.

ODM favours an East African community political federation and advocates for the realisation of EAC customs union authority.

On Agriculture, the party says it will subsidise farm inputs to ensure increased yields, and invest in rural infrastructure so as to facilitate access to markers for farm produce.

To curb environmental pollution, ODM will seek to introduce pollution tax, tax rebates for green enterprises, eco labeling and tradable permits.

And Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka yesterday assured ODM National Delegates that the Coalition of Restoration of Democracy (CORD) would win the presidency in the first round because it is a formidable team.

Kalonzo said the original ODM that was a very strong party was back and that was the party that would form the next Government. “Now that we are together we have time to talk amongst ourselves and work hard so that we can win this election in the first round,” said Musyoka when he attended the ODM NDC in Kasarani.

The VP said leaders in the country needed to be selfless and fight for the ordinary Kenyan so that they would have a comfortable life.

“We must sacrifice our ambitions for the common good of the country and together we are going to deliver to Kenyans the better country that they want,” said the VP.