Azimio rebranded Komboa Kenya coalition

United Opposition leaders, Wiper Democratic Front's (L) Kalonzo Musyoka and PLP's Martha Karura, during a media briefing, July 16, 2026. [Benard Orwongo Standard]

The United Alternative Government have abandoned their plan to form a new political coalition but will change the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Alliance to Komboa Kenya coalition.

This was agreed upon by a section of the Opposition leaders led by Kalonzo Musyoka, who succeeded the late ODM leader Raila Odinga as the Azimio party leader after meeting a section of the Opposition leaders on Tuesday.

The meeting was held at Kalonzo’s SKM centre and brought together Democratic Party (DP leader Justin Muturi, Suba South MP Caroli Omondi, who is also the Azimio Secretary General and a founder of the Linda Mwananchi group, Jubilee Vice Chairperson and former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s confidant David Murathe and the Azimio Executive Director Philip Kisia.

According to the sources who attended the meeting, the leaders resolved that, to avoid the hurdles of registering a new coalition due to possible infiltration by the State, and given the limited time to the general election, it would be easier to rebrand the Azimio coalition compared to registering a new political vehicle.

“There was a feeling that the Government would work hard to frustrate our efforts to register a new vehicle, as we have information that only government-friendly parties are getting the nod to be registered and for that reason, we resolved that rebranding Azimio would be much easier for us,” a source said.

He said after rebranding, the parties within the United Opposition will formally join the new coalition party, after which the change of party officials will ensue to accommodate the sister opposition parties.

Another source said Linda Mwanachi's team, which was represented at the meeting by Calori Omondi, was apprised of the matter and that they are part and parcel of the process.

The group, which is breakaway from the ODM party, is in the process of registering a political party which will have a footing in the Western region, boosted by Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s national stature.

Additionally, the meeting agreed that Muturi will lead the legal processes to rebrand the party owing to his vast experience in legal and political affairs, having served as the Chairman of the Centre for Multiparty Democracy-Kenya (CMD-Kenya) from April 2011 to 2013 and the Speaker of the National Assembly between 2013 and 2022.

Omondi will serve alongside Muturi to cater for the interests of the Linda Mwananchi group

Kalonzo, who is also the co-convener of the United Alternative Government, has been pushing for the rebranding of the Azimio coalition party as opposed to his counterpart, People’s Liberation Party (PLP) leader Martha Karua, who has maintained that Azimio ‘died’ with the death of Raila.

Karua exited from the Azimio party before changing her Narc Kenya name to PLP, saying her party no longer believed in the ideals of the Azimio party after Raila decided to work with Ruto under the Broad-Based government.

While Kalonzo has in the recent past revealed plans to revamp the coalition, Karua has dismissed the proposal, insisting that Azimio was politically dead and cannot be resurrected.

“I don’t see PLP joining Azimio and if there are people who will go to Azimio, they will tell us why we should go back to the ship that sailed while we would have established a new one,” she said.

Caroli Omondi has also publicly announced that Azimio’s presidential ticket will represent a compromise between the older and younger generations of leaders.

He further stated that the Azimio presidential flag bearer in 2027 will come from the community that has consistently supported Raila Odinga’s presidential bids but has never produced a president.

According to him, the time has come for Raila’s community to receive support from other regions in the country.

“His Excellency, the retired President Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, is actually the chairman of the Azimio Council,” Omondi noted. “Kalonzo Musyoka, His Excellency, is the party leader.”

He also expressed confidence that the revamped coalition can consolidate more than 16 million votes in the 2027 general election

“We are looking at that, and I advise my colleagues that we already have a vehicle; let’s use it, perhaps changing the name. I hear the word ‘Ukombozi’; it’s time to liberate this country,” he said.

Their meeting on Tuesday came months after the former President, who is the Azimio coalition chairperson, effected sweeping leadership changes that saw several officials replaced by leaders who remain in the opposition and have not joined the Kenya Kwanza administration.

The changes saw Suna East MP Junet Mohamed lose his position as secretary-general, while cooperative cabinet secretary Wycliffe Oparanya and mining cabinet secretary Hassan Joho were also removed from the Azimio La Umoja National Executive Council following the restructuring.

After Tuesday’s meeting, Kisia wrote to the Speaker of the Senate, Amason Kingi, yesterday protesting the move by Minority Whip Ledama Ole Kina to ‘purport’ to effect changes in the coalition leadership in the Senate by removing Sifuna as Deputy Whip, saying such a decision can only be sanctioned by the Coalition parliamentary party.

“The Senate standing orders require that such a decision be supported by a majority of all members of the coalition PG. We wish to refer you to the coalition agreement at Article 5D (3), which provides that the leadership of the coalition parliamentary group shall be determined by the Coalition Council,’ the letter seen by The Standard read in part.

It added: “It's further instructive that the ODM party, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 11 members who supported the purported changes, had already resolved earlier this year to terminate their membership in the Azimio coalition.”

Kisia urged Kingi to desist from acting upon any purported resolution of the Senate Minority PG pending the determination of the dispute by the Coalition's dispute resolution panel in line with Article 16 of the coalition agreement.

Later in the day, the Azimio faction aligned with President William Ruto effected the changes to remove Sifuna through a letter written by Leader of Minority Steward Madzayo that was communicated to Senate Plenary by Speaker Kingi.

He was referring to a meeting summoned by Ole Kina in the Senate to remove Sifuna, which ended prematurely after a vote supported by 11 members resulted in a brief scuffle with Kina refusing to declare the motion defeated.