Party officials of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) branch in Machakos have suspended their chairman, Jacob Mule, alleging that he supports tycoon Jimi Wanjigi rather than party leader, Raila Odinga.
Addressing the press on Tuesday, February 22, the members argued that Mule shifted his allegiance to Wanjigi, causing tensions within the party.
"Today, we have resolved to suspend Jacob Mule and he is no longer supposed to transact any business on behalf of Machakos ODM County Office," stated a member.
In a statement, the group also claimed that Mule, who was newly installed into the position, was not cooperative with the party and neither championed its ideologies.
"We had a problem with our newly elected chairman who has not been very cooperative and is not supporting our presidential candidate who is Raila Amolo Odinga.
Mule was elected to the position in July 2021 backed by eight chairmen from Machakos Sub-Counties to replace Peter Mutulu.
In the press briefing, the party also urged members seeking to vie under the ODM ticket to align themselves with the expectations of the party.
"One of the reasons why we met here is because we wanted to see how we can call upon our candidates who are going to vie on an ODM ticket in Machakos County," he added.
The team also argued that Wanjigi, who is competing for the presidential ticket against Raila, had waged war against the party's Machakos office.
"In the midst of the row between Wanjigi and us, some of our members left quietly to join his bandwagon," added the members.
Several ODM branch chairpersons distanced themselves from Wanjigi who filed a petition to block the National Delegates Convention (NDC) from taking place.
The tycoon argued that over 1,230 delegates had not been invited to the function, decrying that it would not be conducted fairly. The nomination of the party's flag-bearer was listed as part of the agenda to be discussed.
