Obado skips ODM meeting citing short notice

Migori Governor Okoth Obado, who was invited by the ODM party for talks at Chungwa House Thursday, will not appear after all.

Mr Obado told the Nation that he received a short notice for the meeting but has since communicated with the party and asked for the meeting to be rescheduled.

Dialogue

The governor said he recognises the need for dialogue as “the only way for better management of government affairs.”

He further said: “This should not be viewed as an act of defiance. The invite was a bit urgent when I had other engagements, but I have addressed this with the party.”

“Migori is the bedrock of ODM and nobody should try to antagonise me with the party. Internal wars are, however, everywhere but we commit to address them. We want Jakom (Mr Odinga) to fight big wars and we are committed to help him in that. For the local battles, we will sort them out ourselves,” said the governor.

He said that sibling rivalry was everywhere, including Migori County, but added that as local leaders, they will address such issues amicably.

ODM Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna told the Nation that the party will issue a statement on the same later Thursday.

“We have started our meeting and will issue a statement on this matter later,” Mr Sifuna said.

The party invited Mr Obado for talks at Chungwa House in what insiders said could mark the end of his ouster bid.

ODM, which had recommended impeachment against the governor after a court barred him from accessing his office over graft allegations, could be softening its stand after Mr Odinga, the party leader, last week hinted at a possible reconciliation.

On Wednesday, ODM National Chairman John Mbadi confirmed that indeed Mr Obado had been invited to Chungwa House for talks but did not divulge details of the meeting.

Mr Mbadi, who is also the Suba South MP, said he will chair the meeting.

Mr Sifuna said: “Last weekend, the governor reached out to the party saying it was possible for him to address our concerns regarding service delivery to the people of Migori. We have acceded to his request and want to hear his plans.”

A section of MCAs told the Nation that ODM could have “softened its stance after impeachment proved a hard nut to crack.”

Sources close to Mr Obado on Wednesday intimated to the Nation that the rapprochement between Mr Obado and the ODM leadership was hatched during a meeting at Kang’o Ka Jaramogi in Bondo, where Mr Odinga hosted a delegation of Kikuyu elders.