Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o.
Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o has called on leaders and members of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) to return to the party’s founding ideals.
In a statement on Sunday march 8, the Kisumu Governor said the party must reconnect with its original mission of constitutional reform, democratic governance, and social justice.
Nyong’o pointed out that the ODM party was formed after the 2005 referendum, after Kenyans rejected a draft constitution that retained sweeping powers for the presidency.
“To understand ODM at 20, we must return to the fire that forged it, the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum. By the early 2000s, Kenya faced a dangerous contradiction: multiparty democracy existed in form, but not in substance. Power had changed hands, but not character.
“The presidency remained overbearing an imperial centre clothed in reformist language yet resistant to real accountability. Corruption was systemic. Poverty normalized. Citizenship tolerated, not empowered,” he stated.
Nyong’o noted that the orange symbol adopted during the referendum represented a national rejection of constitutional deception and a demand for real democratic reform.
“ODM was therefore not formed for political comfort. It was born of historical necessity, the political expression of a national awakening,” he stated.
The Kisumu Governor also highlighted that the ODM party’s founding vision was to transform the political culture from ethnic patronage to constitutional citizenship.
ODM event in Mombasa
Governor Nyong’o addressed internal competition within ODM, saying generational contestation should strengthen rather than weaken the party.
He said that young leaders’ questioning old assumptions should not be seen as a rebellion but as a renewal.
“Internal competition is vitality, not decay. A movement that cannot debate cannot think. One that cannot reproduce leadership cannot reproduce relevance. Young leaders questioning old assumptions is renewal, not rebellion,” he remarked.
Further, Nyong’o said ODM must remain a platform for ideas and leadership development rather than a symbolic institution tied to personalities.
Additionally, the Kisumu Governor urged the party to remain committed to transparency, constitutionalism, and democratic governance.
“ODM must remain that vigilant force guarding the Constitution, defending devolution, nurturing democracy, and shaping a nationalism that transcends ethnicity without denying it.
“If we do so, we shall not merely seek power; we shall justify it. We shall not merely win elections; we shall build a nation,” he concluded.
