For the second day running, Winnie Odinga camped at Parliament to rally lawmakers to support her bid for the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA).
Speaking in Parliament on Thursday, November 10, Winnie revealed that she visited the premises daily since her nomination by the ODM party.
Raila Odinga's daughter expressed the need to have the legislators understand her agenda, which she argued, would convince them to support her bid.
The lobbying, she added, included engaging with both house members as the committee scheduled to vet them comprises MPs and Senators.
Her campaigns targeted both Kenya Kwanza and Azimio La Umoja lawmakers.
"I am here to lobby for the position of MP for EALA. I have been here for the past two days and I have met with members for the two sides," she stated.
During her visits, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's daughter was accompanied by Azimio legislators who aided her in rallying their colleagues.
Winnie was among six candidates nominated for the position. Her candidature, however, drew controversy given her relationship with the Azimio party leader and her father, Raila.
Nonetheless, ODM - through its secretary general - Edwin Sifuna - maintained that she deserved the nomination.
Sifuna cited Winnie's devotion and sacrifice during the presidential campaigns.
"Those who worked with her during the campaigns know what she can do. The public has decided to make this second name a burden or a curse, which is quite unfortunate. Let people be judged by their capacity," he argued.
A special committee made of 14 lawmakers is scheduled to vet the nominees in the coming days before the election is held to fill the 9 required slots.
“Once the names have been listed, members will campaign, and MPs are the voters, for that matter. They will move around, share their ideas and speak on why they think they deserve to represent Kenya in EALA.
"As it is right now, the proposed date for elections is November 17, 2022. We do not want the previous experience where Kenya’s Parliament delayed the setting up of EALA,” Senate Majority leader Aaron Cheruiyot stated.
