ODM leader Oburu Oginga, 82, has long referred to himself as a “youth leader,” using the term to assert his focus on engaging young people and addressing their challenges.
Despite his advanced age, the Siaya Senator began aligning himself more closely with Gen Z in 2024, when the group staged protests against the government over the controversial Finance Bill.
Even as Dr Oginga associates with the youth, a fierce battle is brewing within his Linda Ground faction over the representation of young people in the party’s hierarchy.
Last Wednesday, Migori Senator Eddy Oketch set the tone on the contentious issue when he criticised a poster for the ODM youth convention scheduled for Sunday in Malindi. The poster, branded in ODM Youth League colours, notably lacked the image of any youth leader within the Linda Ground ranks.
Instead, it featured photos of Dr Oginga, Governors Gladys Wanga (Homa Bay), Simba Arati (Kisii), Gideon Mung’aro (Kilifi), Minority Leader Junet Mohamed, and Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho.
“This is where the problem begins in the party, the unintentional exclusion of youth both in leadership and in their own forums,” said the outspoken senator.
“For the past year, I have tried to raise our discontent internally through party organs. I have also spoken to top party leaders about youth involvement, but it is becoming unbearable,” added the first-term senator, arguing that the faces on the poster would not appeal to young people to embrace the Linda Ground faction even as campaigns for 2027 elections intensifies.
He questioned why the images of leaders such as EALA MP Winnie Odinga, nominated MP Umulkher Harun Mohamed (Umi), nominated Senator Hezena Lemaletian, Lang’ata MP Felix Odiwuor, or Malindi MP Amina Mnyazi, the host, were missing.
Before Mr Oketch’s outburst, the issue had persistently been raised by Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai, who has openly clashed with ODM Youth League President John Ketorah.
Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Youth League President John Ketora during a press conference at Chungwa House, Nairobi on July 28, 2025.
Photo credit: File
Mr Alai argued that Ketorah, currently serving his second term, is no longer a youth and should step aside to pave the way for younger leadership.
“How can you ask UDA to respect you when you don’t respect your own constitution? A 41-year-old is still occupying the ODM Youth League President seat,” Alai wrote on April 17.
When ODM held its youth convention last Sunday in Nairobi, Mr Alai again criticized the event, describing it as meaningless so long as Mr Ketorah is still at the helm.
“The party must immediately remove Mr Ketorah as Youth Leader and allow a young person to assume leadership, aligned with a clear strategy and vision to grow the party. The current schemes are detached from the path to victory,” he said.
Speaking to Nation , Ketorah conceded that youths were “seemingly” sidelined during the Nairobi convention but attributed this to fears that the event would have been infiltrated by youth aligned to the rival Linda Mwananchi faction.
“That happened because they didn’t want youths from the other faction to infiltrate and take over, but this will not happen in future conventions,” he said from Malindi, where another youth convention is set for Sunday.
ODM has planned a series of youth conventions across 40 counties, with upcoming events scheduled in Kwale and Taita Taveta on May 9 and 10, respectively.
Responding to Mr Oketch, Mr Ketorah dismissed his criticism as insincere, accusing him of being used to undermine the youth wing that helped him secure his seat.
Migori Senator Eddy Oketch.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
“He is selfish and ungrateful. I was the one who proposed him through our academy of young aspirants and convinced the party to give him the ticket. He is a senator because of the youth league he is now despising,” said Ketorah, who is eyeing the Kajiado East parliamentary seat in 2027 on an ODM ticket.
On Mr Alai’s criticism, he acknowledged being older but maintained that he was within the youth bracket when first elected and re-elected.
“I am serving my second and final term as per our constitution. Why should I resign midway? He is neither a member of the youth league nor a party official, so he should not dwell on my age,” Mr Ketorah said.
He added that he took over the youth league in 2014 after former Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Mohamed defected to the UhuRuto camp ahead of the 2017 elections.
“When Rashid left, the youth league nearly collapsed, but we rebuilt it into a formidable party structure. We will not be distracted by jealousy or individuals working for our opponents,” Mr Ketorah said.
Makadara MP George Aladwa has also weighed in on the issue, suggesting that Winnie Odinga, who replaced her father Raila Odinga as a Nairobi delegate, should be elevated to a deputy party leader position.
While the Linda Ground faction grapples with youth representation, the breakaway Linda Mwananchi faction appears to have struck a balance between experience and youth.
It includes seasoned leaders such as Siaya Governor James Orengo alongside younger politicians like Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Saboti MP Caleb Amisi, Funyula MP Oundo Mudenyo, and ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, all of whom play a key role in its activities.
