Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga has slammed the media for what he described as a misinterpretation of his remarks, amid criticism following remarks made by the party's Secretary General Edwin Sifuna.
Raila spoke during a church service in Karachuonyo, where he doubled down on his comments, which he made on Friday, where he appeared to defend Sifuna, saying the Secretary General was simply stating his personal opinion.
Appearing in an interview on Citizen TV, Sifuna elicited a heated debate after he confessed that ODM was confused about the agreement they had with Kenya Kwanza and that, as it stands, the agreement was not being followed. Sifuna also declared the agreement expired.
Sifuna’s remarks hinted at deeper tensions brewing within ODM’s senior leadership. Raila, however, reminded party members of the proper channels to resolve disagreements and warned them against airing internal matters on public platforms.
While the ODM boss's initial comments were viewed as divisive towards ODM, he clarified that he did not necessarily agree with Sifuna, contrary to what sections of the media were reporting.
According to Raila, he simply reiterated that Sifuna had a democratic right to express his opinion, which did not represent that of ODM.
''The media is all the time prone to misinterpreting what I say. I've said that Sifuna has a democratic right to a personal opinion as the Secretary General,'' Raila said.
During a TV interview last week, Sifuna apologised to ODM loyalists, admitting that the party, which was considered one of the largest in the country, was grappling with confusion and uncertainty, particularly after Raila signed an MoU with President William Ruto earlier in the year.
Notably, sections of ODM leaders have remained firmly behind Raila's decision, while others have opted to go the other way, emerging as fierce critics of the Kenya Kwanza government.
On the apparent conflict brewing within ODM, Raila revealed there would be a meeting on the same and issue a way forward in the near future.
He went on, ''At the same time, other members of the party are not aligned with his opinion. I said we should sit down as a party and discuss this in the proper organ of the party and come up with a resolution of the party's stand.''
''So what Sifuna said is a personal opinion, but ODM's opinion will come as a result of discussions within the organs of the party. This is what I said yesterday, and the media should not misinterpret what I am saying. It is not fair to the people of Kenya.''
