ODM divided over Ababu move as Bungoma Governor hosts Jubilee allies

Budalangi MP Ababu Namwamba

Budalangi MP Ababu Namwamba’s move to join the Labour Party of Kenya (LPK) has elicited mixed reactions in his former party ODM.

While some asked him to work with CORD, others termed his move as inconsequential. Namwamba officially joined LPK on Thursday night after keeping his supporters guessing for three months since resigning as ODM secretary general.

John Mbadi, the ODM Chairman and Suba MP welcomed LPK’s move to re-brand and asked its leadership to work with CORD.

“Politics is dynamic. LPK joining CORD is acceptable. Ababu is still one of us and seems to have abandoned the Third Force idea which is a wise move. I don’t think we should be harsh on him. I would hesitate to dismiss him,’’ stressed Mbadi.

But Busia Governor Sospeter Ojaamong just wished Namwamba well and insisted that he was better off in ODM.

“I wish him well. Let him try his luck where he believes he can make it. Namwamba already betrayed ODM and CORD. There is little he can bring on board because the vacuum he created has been filled,” said Ojaamong.

Butere MP and Kakamega ODM Secretary General Andrew Toboso also said LPK’s rebranding is inconsequential to the Opposition as the country’s political formation is already complete.

“Key players in the political arena have already taken positions. LPK will be struggling and when one forms a party, he should indicate where the support base is. Forming a party is an area that is predominantly in the hands of rivals adds no value,’’ he said.

Namwamba had indicated that he would be launching a ‘Third Force’ when he resigned together with Funyula MP Paul Otuoma (vice chairman) and Sirisia MP John Waluke (ODM chairman Bungoma County) in July.

But Waluke has since joined the newly launched Jubilee Party while Otuoma maintains he is in ODM to stay. Otuoma graced LPK’s 8th anniversary and re-branding in Nairobi where he declared that the party is a member of the CORD coalition and Namwamba was still part of them.

“LPK is a party that has been in existence for years. Attending a function does not mean I have defected. I also attended ANC’s launch months ago,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bungoma Governor Ken Lusaka has vowed to channel all his energies towards ensuring the Jubilee Party (JP) becomes the most-popular political outfit in Western Kenya.

On Thursday, the governor held a closed-door meeting with more than 60 Members of County Assemblies (MCAs), MPs and Women Representatives allied to JP at a Kisumu hotel.

The leaders were drawn from Bungoma and Trans-Nzoia counties and included Trans-Nzoia County Woman Representative Janet Wanyama, her Bungoma counterpart Reginalda Wanyonyi and Bumula MP Boniface Otsiula.

“We don’t want to waste any time. We met to chart the way forward given JP does not have a command structure at the counties level as at now,” Lusaka said.