Former Kasarani Constituency MP Elizabeth Ongoro has ditched former Prime Minister Raila Odinga for the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party.
The former lawmaker was welcomed into President William Ruto-led party at an all-Yellow event held by Secretary General Cleophas Malala at the UDA headquarters.
Malala noted that Ongoro brought a wealth of political experience having served as a lawmaker for more than a decade.
"We must say that we are pleased to welcome into the UDA Party former Senator Elizabeth Ongoro. You have publicly defected from ODM Party to join the ruling party.
"As you well know, Senator Ongoro brings to the party a wealth of experience gained over at least a decade. A period when she served as the MP for Kasarani and also a Nominated Senator," stated the Secretary-General.
Welcoming her into UDA, Malala further challenged the politician to help the ruling party in putting a stop to the ongoing protests in Nairobi.
"She is an accomplished and astute politician. She is a mass mobiliser. Ongoro, you are joining the UDA party at a time when we have heightened party activities across the country as we gather momentum for the next General Election," he added.
Until her defection, Ongoro was a core player of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party led by Raila Odinga. The politician rejoined the party in 2020 ahead of the 2022 General Election.
Throughout her stay at ODM, Ongoro, who is the sister to Rarienda MP Otiende Amollo, was considered a key player within the opposition.
Her fallout with ODM began in 2017 after she was asked to ditch her plans to contest for the Ruaraka Parliamentary seat.
She cited frustrations in the party after some 400 members were given direct tickets leaving her in the cold.
She moved to Amani National Congress (ANC), which was under Musalia Mudavadi's leadership at the time, but lost the race before making her return to ODM in 2020.
She lost the race to Tom Kajwang'.
