Siaya Governor James Orengo addresses delegates during the People’s Delegate Convention organised by the Linda Mwananchi faction of the ODM at Ufungamano House in Nairobi on March 27, 2026.
Siaya Governor James Orengo has outlined four conditions that must be met before he will agree to meet with Dr Oburu Oginga, leader of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), to resolve their ongoing political dispute.
Last Sunday, speakers at a rally in Kisumu urged the Luo community to unite for greater bargaining power ahead of the 2027 general election.
However, even as anticipation grows over a possible truce between these two influential political figures, Governor Orengo has made it clear that reconciliation will not be easy.
He is demanding a clearly structured framework to guide any talks, demonstrable commitment from Dr Oginga and the party hierarchy to restore the founding ideals of the ODM as championed by former leader Raila Odinga, and a neutral arbitration team excluding the current Luo Council of Elders leadership.
Siaya Governor James Orengo addresses delegates during the People’s Delegate Convention organised by the Linda Mwananchi faction of the ODM at Ufungamano House in Nairobi on March 27, 2026.
Furthermore, he wants Dr Oginga to relinquish his position as party leader and allow other presidential hopefuls within the ODM to contest the role, given that the Siaya senator has declared his intention to defend his Senate seat.
“The only logical thing for Oburu to do is to relinquish his seat as Party Leader and allow others from within the party to contest for the presidency. But I am very sure that he will not because those interested in controlling him will not allow it,” Mr Orengo said in an exclusive telephone interview with the Daily Nation.
His demands set the stage for what could become a defining contest over ODM’s future direction, exposing the delicate balance between calls for unity and an intensifying struggle for influence in the post-Raila era.
While the party’s top leadership is widely seen as backing President William Ruto’s re-election bid in 2027, Mr Orengo, alongside ODM Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino and Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi, under the Linda Mwananchi faction, has chosen a different path. The group has openly campaigned against the Kenya Kwanza leader’s re-election.
The divide has widened fault lines within ODM and across Nyanza. Currently, political allegiances in Nyanza largely fall into two camps: those aligned to Mr Orengo and those backing Dr Oginga. Those backing Dr Oginga include ODM Chairperson Gladys Wanga, Kisii Governor Simba Arati, Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir and National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed.
So deep is the rift that Mr Orengo has publicly declared himself the party’s de facto leader, despite Dr Oginga formally holding the position. The governor insists that Dr Oginga has never extended an olive branch.
“Oburu has never reached out to me for reconciliation and has never sent the clergy to me. I have been meeting Reverend David Kodia and retired Archbishop Zacchaeus Okoth owing to the history we have,” said Mr Orengo.
ODM party leader Dr Oburu Oginga and Siaya Governor James Orengo during a past event
However, the Nation has established that several attempts have been made to bring the two leaders together, although none has borne fruit. Mr Orengo maintains that certain conditions must first be met.
“A well-structured framework for the meeting has to be agreed upon by both parties so that it does not turn into a shouting match. You remember how the Ciala Resort meeting, meant to unite leaders, failed. I do not want to go into a meeting where there is no interest in achieving its intended purpose,” he said.
He also outlined his preferred criteria for arbitrators, arguing that the Luo Council of Elders has already taken sides and therefore cannot be an impartial mediator.
On May 26, 2026 and again during Sunday’s rally, chairman of the council Ker Odungi Randa lamented the growing divisions within Luo leadership.
“The leadership on both sides of the divide is neither paying attention nor listening. We are talking at and tearing each other apart, dismantling our unity and strength, and reducing our community to a laughing stock before our detractors,” said Mr Randa.
However, Mr Orengo believes the council can no longer claim neutrality.
“We sent signals to the Luo Council of Elders to keep off the day-to-day politics of the region, but they ignored it. The elders are incapable of presiding over these talks and should disqualify themselves from this process because they are partisan and have already taken a position and pronounced themselves publicly,” he said.
He added that Mr Randa’s predecessor, the late Willis Otondi, had always exercised greater caution when engaging in local politics. A range of emissaries, including clergy, politicians and professionals, has attempted to bridge the divide, but the two leaders have yet to meet.
Speaking in an interview on a vernacular radio station, Dr Oginga acknowledged the efforts made by church leaders to mend relations.
“Bishop Kodia of Bondo has tried calling us to meet and talk, but I think the meeting never happened. Bishop Okoth also attempted and we are waiting. Personally, I will go and listen to what he has to say about what is troubling Jim (Orengo) because I have nothing personal with him or from within the party,” said Dr Oginga.
Siaya Governor James Orengo (left) and ODM party leader Dr Oburu Oginga.
Responding to Mr Orengo’s criticism of the process that elevated him to Party Leader, Dr Oginga said he was unanimously endorsed during the party’s Special Delegates Conference, an event largely boycotted by Mr Orengo and his allies.
“I am wondering how the de facto title helps him without any institution. I don’t see what we are scrambling for with him. There will be another opportunity to elect the party leader and he is free to present himself,” said the ODM leader.
The Siaya Senator also accused Mr Orengo of failing to focus sufficiently on service delivery in Siaya County, alleging that some funds were being diverted to projects for which they were not intended.
Mr Orengo contends that Dr Oginga’s decision to align himself with some of his critics and rivals, including Deputy Governor William Oduol, Alego Usonga MP Samuel Atandi and other Siaya leaders, is intended to undermine him politically.
The strained relationship between Mr Orengo and the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga family stretches back decades, marked by political rivalries during the 1994 Ford Kenya succession battle and the 1997 and 2002 General Elections.
The tensions resurfaced during the 2013 elections when Dr Oginga and Mr Orengo clashed over the Siaya Senate seat. Dr Oginga had already launched his campaign when Mr Orengo entered the race late after playing a pivotal role in Raila Odinga’s 2007 bid.
To avert a fallout during ODM nominations, Raila intervened, persuading Dr Oginga to withdraw and instead pursue the governorship. That path, however, became turbulent after William Oduol emerged as the frontrunner.
Following a deadlock in the nomination process that disqualified both candidates, the ticket was eventually awarded to Cornel Rasanga, who became Siaya’s first governor.
Rivalry resurfaced when Dr Oginga backed Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o as acting party leader after Raila sought the African Union Commission chairmanship and opposed proposals to hand over the party leadership to Mr Orengo.
Even before his death, Raila was caught between the leaders' sharp disagreements over the 'two-term' versus 'one-term' debate — ideological differences that continue to drive a wedge between Dr Oginga and Mr Orengo.
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