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Kitui governor Charity Ngilu was forced to leave in a huff after an unbalanced Raila Odinga exploded during a meeting at his Karen home. The target of Raila’s verbal whipping was James Orengo. Inside sources told Weekly Citizen that the ODM leader is yet to come to terms with the fact that he is watching as his grip on Luos and ODM loosens rapidly. Aware of this fact that only those afraid to face reality are not prepared to acknowledge, Orengo and others in ODM have been edging their bets by way of finally collecting their brains from where they had disposed them all these years as they sang baba sings and are now daring to try think. It is Ngilu who brokered the meeting that was aimed at reconciling the ODM leader and Orengo.
Charity Ngilu
Raila has marked the Siaya senator as enemy number one after he expressed misgivings on the BBI. Orengo had sought for a meeting with Raila to express his side of the story apparently after realising that the ground had turned hostile against him for going against Raila. He approached Ngilu who called Raila resulting to the meeting that also saw the attendance of Kakamega governor Wycliffe Oparanya and Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo. Otiende who had sided with Orengo as they tried to stand on the right side of history as far as the legality of BBI was concerned was immediately fired from the Justice and legal affairs committee and replaced by Ruaraka MP TJ Kajwang. However, courtesy of Cotu secretary general Francis Atwoli, Otiende mend fences with Raila. Otiende visited Atwoli at his Kajiado residence seeking a truce.
James Orengo
The Karen meeting with Raila was tension packed and a dismayed Ngilu left halfway saying ‘please just sort it out amicably’. Immediately after the meeting with Raila, there was talk that Otiende had been given back his position after ironing out things. However, your favourite Weekly Citizen has learnt that the meeting did not make any change despite the photos sent on social media to show things were back to normal between Raila and the perceived renegades. Those who understand body language said that it was apparent that Raila was not for the idea of a photo session given that he appeared like he was in periphery of the photo and not the centre of attention as is usual.
Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya
An insider said that Raila had no option but to portray a fatherly figure by accepting a meeting and a photo session with the politicians while deep in his heart he harbours contrary position against Orengo and his team. Sources further said that the ODM leader is plotting a wrath against Orengo aware that the Siaya senator has a real and longstanding political grudge with him dating back to early 1990s during their days in Ford-Kenya party founded by the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. Orengo is impatient to take the mantle as the Luo kingpin as he believes it is his time to shine factoring in Raila’s failing health and fading clout. The unprecedented rebellion against Raila witnessed in his Nyanza backyard has shocked his yes men and women who now say there is need to embark on overhaul to remove the perceived plotters of political coup in a region known for voting as a bloc or Raila over the years in what many see as unnatural democracy.
Otiende Amollo
Main targets ahead of the 2022 general elections apart from Orengo are Migori governor Okoth Obado a host of MPs. Otiende and Alego/ Usonga MP Samuel Atandi are some of the Luo MPs who had openly and aggressively identified themselves with Orengo in discrediting BBI that they say has no benefits for Luos in distribution of constituencies. Others tactically in Orengo’s team are Mbita MP Millie Odhiambo and her Gem counterpart Elisha Odhiambo who has since gone underground. Orange House is said to be working on a plan that would ensure that the marked politicians are voted out in 2022 general elections. The plan is to work with other politicians as well as grooming new players and for the case of Gem constituency, former area MP Jakoyo Midiwo is expected to get the support of the ODM party.
Tom Joseph Kajwang
The party is grooming Nicholas Kut to unseat Atandi. What makes Atandi’s matter complicated is that apart from fighting the ODM party leader, voters have been raising serious concerns over his performance in terms of development, which was his main campaign agenda. He is also accused of mismanaging the CDF kitty after it emerged that most schools were renovated but marked as newly constructed. Many came to know Kut, the aspirant giving Atandi sleepless nights, after a recent incident when Orengo, Atandi and Nyakach MP Aduma Owuor met the wrath of a charged crowd during an event to install an assistant chief in Alego/Usonga constituency. The three were crisscrossing Nyanza in a hired chopper and had just landed in the area after a similar event in Nyatike in Migori county.
Samuel Atandi
Trouble started when Atandi barred Kut from addressing the crowd, prompting the locals to demand that the aspirant be given an opportunity to talk to them. Pundits say that Orengo, after realising that Raila has intelligence touching on his association with Ruto, has now made a strategic comeback with a view of winning Raila’s trust once again. It is also rumoured that there are ongoing talks within the handshake team to have Jubilee secretary general Raphael Tuju reclaim his former seat from Otiende. Tuju is however said to be reluctant to such arrangement but last week he made a political presence on the ground to test waters.
Millie Mabona Odhiambo
The voters were yearning for his comeback. The irony being that it was Raila who declared war on Tuju and had him voted out in what analysts said were fears by Raila that Tuju would do too much development and overshadow Raila. Some times back, Orengo and Oparanya had a meeting with Raila at a time they knew well that the ODM leader was sick and weak. The fact that Raila was recuperating at home was his best time to execute their hidden agenda. Keen observers were, however, quick to point the meeting was suspect since it came a day after Oparanya had met Ruto. Ordinarily, it was meant to create an impression that Oparanya had a message from William Ruto to Raila.
Elisha Odhiambo
Important to note is the fact that Orengo has repeatedly instigated moments that almost ended the handshake deal between Raila and Uhuru Kenyatta including one when he made claims of cabals within the government who were out to shortchange Raila in his presidential ambitions. Coincidently, they were with Otiende in his Rarieda constituency when they both made the remarks with Otiende stressing that ODM followers were ready to go back to the street. The idea, it is said, was to manufacture animosity between Raila and Uhuru while at the same time give leeway to the deputy president. A group of Luo lawyers are said to be angry with Orengo after he misled them into believing that it was Raila who had sanctioned the war against BBI.
Jakoyo Midiwo
Orengo said to be an administrator in a WhatsApp group that brings together Luo MPs who are lawyers took advantage of his unlimited access to Raila to mislead the group and propagate his personal interest. The matter was exposed after some MPs in the same group went to visit Raila at his Karen home and upon being asked why there was outrage over the BBI, they responded that it was Orengo who told them that Raila had approved the war. However, a surprised Raila told them he did not issue such directives and ordered them to drop the idea. An inside source further said that it was at this particular time that one of the MPs texted a message into the WhatsApp group asking Orengo whether ‘Baba’ had approved the war against BBI. Those in the know say the Siaya senator did not answer but chose to go mute to date but what followed was a mass withdrawal from the group reducing the group to a ghost platform with only Orengo and a handful others.
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