Wanjigi Reveals Plot to Lock Him Out of ODM Presidential Nominations

Businessman Jimi Wanjigi at ODM Headquarters on Friday, August 27, 2021.
Businessman Jimi Wanjigi at ODM Headquarters on Friday, August 27, 2021.
Twitter

Businessman Jimi Wanjigi has raised alarm, claiming that there is a plot to lock him out of the ODM presidential nominations.

Speaking in Mbeere, Embu County on Saturday, September 4, Wanjigi claimed there is a plot by the Orange Democratic Movement Party to conduct secret presidential nominations ahead of the 2022 General Election.

Wanjigi warned ODM leaders against using underhand tactics and methods to pick a presidential candidate, stating that the credibility of the party will be seriously jeopardized.

"I'm an ODM life member, I am fully aware of the methods the party may use to pick its presidential flag-bearer," said Wanjigi, who fell short of making reference to the infamous 'Men in Black' incident.

Businessman Jimi Wanjigi in Mbeere on Saturday, September 4, 2021.
Businessman Jimi Wanjigi in Mbeere on Saturday, September 4, 2021.
Twitter

"I would like to remind Odinga that the ODM constitution lays it out very well in Article 6 that all national officials shall be elected by the national delegates conference," he added.

Wanjigi also turned the heat on ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, asking him to hold party nominations. The businessman noted that the SG has so far received two applications from party members, wishing to contest for the presidential ticket.

Wanjigi said he will formally present his application as soon as the ODM National Executive Committee (NEC) opens the next window.

"My demands are simply that the spirit and the letter of the democratic tenets secured in the party constitution be followed. I don’t understand what the SG finds difficult with that," Wanjigi stated.

"I will not relent from my demand for a democratic and people-driven process within the party so that we can face competitors as one solid force capable of forming the next government," he added.

This comes barely a day after Sifuna told off the presidential hopeful over his calls for a National Delegates Conference (NDC) to choose the party’s flag bearer for the 2022 presidential election. 

Sifuna, who addressed the press at the party headquarters in Nairobi on Friday, September 3, said the party would use any of the four procedures set out in the party's constitution to choose its candidates for various seats. 

v
Businessman Jimi Wanjigi and ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna at Chungwa House on Friday, August 27, 2021.
Twitter