Raila's ODM disbands elections board as party goes for devolved system
ODM leader Raila Odinga.
ODM leader Raila Odinga has disbanded the party’s National Elections Board (NEB) as he begins to revamp the outfit in readiness for the 2027 General Election.
Mr Odinga has kicked out current board chairperson Catherine Mumma—who is also a nominated senator—as well as Abdulahi Diriye and Syntei Nchoe.
The decision to disband the board was made on Wednesday during the ODM Central Management Committee meeting chaired by Mr Odinga.
The meeting resolved to devolve party elections by having the exercise conducted at the county level under the supervision of two elections coordinators. At the top, the meeting proposed the creation of the National Elections Coordinating Committee to be made up of three members.
Emily Awita and Richard Tairo, who served in the now-defunct NEB, were retained and appointed to the new coordinating committee. Ms Awita was proposed to chair the new team while Beatrice Askul has been proposed to be the third member.
“The Central Management Committee has proposed the disbandment of the Party’s Election Board as currently constituted and to devolve management of its elections to the grassroots,” ODM Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna said in a statement. He added that the proposals shall be presented to the relevant organs for ratification.
Mr Sifuna said the proposed changes are aimed at “efficiency, promoting greater credibility and empowering the grassroots to play a more central role in the spirit of devolution which the party holds dear”.
Last July, Mr Odinga chaired a stormy Central Management Committee to discuss the performance of the party in the 2022 General Election, with top party officials said to have raised misgivings with the board under Ms Mumma.
It emerged that some of the voting gadgets did not have security safeguards to prevent rigging. Some members were also infuriated by the issuance of direct tickets to a majority of MPs who were defending their seats.
The dolling of direct tickets was also widespread in the senator and governor races, especially in Nyanza and Western regions. They felt that this could have disenfranchised some voters in the region.
