Siaya Governor James Orengo has maintained that he shall not join the “praise and worship” of the Kenya Kwanza government, which he says will be akin to contravening the constitution.
The county chief, who has maintained his criticism towards the President William Ruto led-administration, said the country is not heading in the right direction as far as respect to the law and fidelity to the constitution is concerned.
He insisted that the Orange Democratic Movement Party must work towards changing some things within the electoral system by championing for fidelity to the constitution.
“We are setting a bad precedent in our country in the name of signing post poll pacts. I want a situation where in future, if Raila is not on the ballot, our grandchildren can contest and win elections or lose. Let them lose fairly but not because of a bad precedent set by us,” added Mr Orengo, when he launched the construction of a hospital in Bar Ndege.
Nyanza professionals accuse Orengo of undermining Ruto-Raila pact
Reflecting on his professional and political journey, Mr Orengo pointed out that the nation is headed in the wrong direction as far as the rule of law is concerned.
“I have worked with all the presidents of this country and believe me when I tell you the country is on a bad trajectory. I worked with Argwings Kodhek, I saw the late Tom Mboya try making things work in this country before he was killed; I worked with Presidents Daniel Moi, Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta and now President William Ruto,” he noted further.
Mr Orengo vowed that he would fight for the Constitution 2010 even if it means losing his political seat.
“We must strive to be a democratic nation where elections are held peacefully like other countries. There are countries like Botswana that have mature democracy because of fidelity to the constitution,” noted Mr Orengo.
The political romance between President Ruto and the ODM boss was formed last year after the infamous Gen-Z demonstrations which culminated into invasion of the parliamentary premises.
ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna and Mr Orengo have since been the front critics of the pact openly; they have received considerable scorns from other leaders who feel they are acting contrary to the party’s decision.
The pact brought about a number of the Orange party officials Hassan Joho (Mining), Wycliffe Oparanya (Cooperatives), Opiyo Wandayi (Energy), John Mbadi (Treasury), and Beatrice Askul (East African Community).
Seasoned advocate Dorcas Oduor (Attorney General), previously the deputy Public Prosecutor, hails from Alego Usonga in Siaya County.
The Kenya Kwanza, ODM pact on the other hand has had a number of casualties; former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua , was ousted through impeachment, former Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi, and House committee heads like Ndindi Nyoro (Budget) among others.
But Mr Orengo reflected on the last four elections where he claimed ODM Party leader Raila Odinga garnered more votes than any other candidate, but through underhand methods he was never declared the winner.
“Since 2007, we have seen the most prominent and progressive leader Mr Odinga win elections but the process is bungled and he never gets to be declared the winner. These are things that are affecting our country’s democracy and I shall not fear saying them,” said the county boss.
He urged the electorates and the leaders within ODM to cease being content with the mere positions offered by the Kenya Kwanza government.
“Don’t be contented that one of you is a Principal Secretary, never be contented that some of you have been appointed Cabinet Secretaries, one time I was a minister in this country, we had Jaramogi as the founding Vice President even Raila was a Prime Minister, never be contented with those,” thundered Orengo who was addressing the electorates in East Ugenya, his backyard.
The county chief further took a swipe at the judiciary saying, "Even our courts have developed a bad tendency."
