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The long-expected ouster of Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna from the helm of the Orange Democratic Movement, whose origins, by the way, draw inspiration from a similar outfit in Ukraine, has spurred a funky slogan: “Sisi ndio Sifuna.”
It builds on the leitmotif that the ousted ODM Secretary General popularised: “Mimi Ndio Sifuna,” he would declare in a self-introduction that performed a variety of subtle but nuanced political manoeuvres.
Of course, Sifuna needs no introduction; his intro is a direct dare to his detractors. But it’s also a teaser, mocking those who underrate his capabilities. It was his way of saying: If you don’t know what I can do, just know I’m not afraid, because I am Sifun.
Sifuna’s successor, by contrast, Catherine Omanyo, needs some introduction, even though she faltered when the moment came. She said the acting SG was “Honourable Me,” an abstract entity that required more than a little elaboration.
Quite honestly, I didn’t know the Busia Woman Rep, because there are so many Women Reps in this country. Neither did I know she was Sifuna’s deputy because they never appeared together. Using this mathematical logic, moving from the known to the unknown, from an outspoken, eloquent, good-looking man to a pretty-faced, soft-spoken, stuttering female marks a sudden emasculation of the ODM party.
I can objectify their looks because the ODM party seems particularly interested in the outward, not the inward capabilities of its leadership, such as ensuring Sifuna’s purported successor emerges from the Mulembe nation as he did.
The reason is simple: in the balkanised politics that we’re experiencing, reviving structures of ethnic chieftaincy, Oburu’s calculus appears keen to replace a Luhya with another, in the same way he’s succeeded his brother as the party leader, one would think ODM is a family property.
Perhaps it is, since Oburu has decreed that he will be ODM’s presidential candidate if the party does not go the route that he prefers, which is to support the ruling coalition, UDA. Incidentally, he blames his departed brother’s electoral loss on vote theft, without declaring who the thief is or was.
And here’s the irony. With more than 12 million new voters eligible in next year’s general election, it really doesn’t matter what regional ethnic barons are plotting; the new voters, devoid of ethnic prejudices, are singing a new song: “Sisi ndio Sifuna.”
It means they associate with the politics of the future that Sifuna represents, in the way Oburu represents the old order, and they are willing to throw their lot with him. Put simply, Sifuna’s contrarian spirit wedges well with their own vision of the future. That future is not about continuing with the current regime, but plotting its ouster.
That was the message from Siaya Governor James Orengo, who claimed the affairs of the ODM were being tele-directed by Prezzo Bill Ruto, and urged him to steer clear of the party. Apparently, Oburu has been consulting with Prezzo Ruto on everything he does.
There was a time, in the not-too-distant past, when individual members of the opposition joined the government in droves, voting with the government to enact some of the most oppressive statutes, making nonsense of the principle of separation of powers.
This week, I retreated to a hamlet on the fringe of Nairobi where the underground elements plotted the ouster of the Kanu dictatorship in the early 1980s. It was called Mwakenya. A hallmark of Kanu’s capitulation was the return of multiparty politics.
If such gains are being rolled back with the ease of Oburu’s laboured footsteps and equally laboured speeches, it’s safe to say to you, my fellow citizens, we’d better get ready and sing: Sisi ndio Sifuna!
After all, we don’t vote for parties but for individuals. That distinction is vital now more than ever before.
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The long-expected ouster of Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna from the helm of the Orange Democratic Movement, whose origins, by the way, draw inspiration from a similar outfit in Ukraine, has spurred a funky slogan: “Sisi ndio Sifuna.”
It builds on the leitmotif that the ousted ODM Secretary General popularised: “Mimi Ndio Sifuna,” he would declare in a self-introduction that performed a variety of subtle but nuanced political manoeuvres.
Of course, Sifuna needs no introduction; his intro is a direct dare to his detractors. But it’s also a teaser, mocking those who underrate his capabilities. It was his way of saying: If you don’t know what I can do, just know I’m not afraid, because I am Sifun.
Sifuna’s successor, by contrast, Catherine Omanyo, needs some introduction, even though she faltered when the moment came. She said the acting SG was “Honourable Me,” an abstract entity that required more than a little elaboration.
Quite honestly, I didn’t know the Busia Woman Rep, because there are so many Women Reps in this country. Neither did I know she was Sifuna’s deputy because they never appeared together. Using this mathematical logic, moving from the known to the unknown, from an outspoken, eloquent, good-looking man to a pretty-faced, soft-spoken, stuttering female marks a sudden emasculation of the ODM party.
I can objectify their looks because the ODM party seems particularly interested in the outward, not the inward capabilities of its leadership, such as ensuring Sifuna’s purported successor emerges from the Mulembe nation as he did.
The reason is simple: in the balkanised politics that we’re experiencing, reviving structures of ethnic chieftaincy, Oburu’s calculus appears keen to replace a Luhya with another, in the same way he’s succeeded his brother as the party leader, one would think ODM is a family property.
Perhaps it is, since Oburu has decreed that he will be ODM’s presidential candidate if the party does not go the route that he prefers, which is to support the ruling coalition, UDA. Incidentally, he blames his departed brother’s electoral loss on vote theft, without declaring who the thief is or was.
And here’s the irony. With more than 12 million new voters eligible in next year’s general election, it really doesn’t matter what regional ethnic barons are plotting; the new voters, devoid of ethnic prejudices, are singing a new song: “Sisi ndio Sifuna.”
It means they associate with the politics of the future that Sifuna represents, in the way Oburu represents the old order, and they are willing to throw their lot with him. Put simply, Sifuna’s contrarian spirit wedges well with their own vision of the future. That future is not about continuing with the current regime, but plotting its ouster.
That was the message from Siaya Governor James Orengo, who claimed the affairs of the ODM were being tele-directed by Prezzo Bill Ruto, and urged him to steer clear of the party. Apparently, Oburu has been consulting with Prezzo Ruto on everything he does.
There was a time, in the not-too-distant past, when individual members of the opposition joined the government in droves, voting with the government to enact some of the most oppressive statutes, making nonsense of the principle of separation of powers.
This week, I retreated to a hamlet on the fringe of Nairobi where the underground elements plotted the ouster of the Kanu dictatorship in the early 1980s. It was called Mwakenya. A hallmark of Kanu’s capitulation was the return of multiparty politics.
If such gains are being rolled back with the ease of Oburu’s laboured footsteps and equally laboured speeches, it’s safe to say to you, my fellow citizens, we’d better get ready and sing: Sisi ndio Sifuna!
After all, we don’t vote for parties but for individuals. That distinction is vital now more than ever before.
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By Peter Kimani