Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG) party leader David Ochieng has declared that he will run for the presidency in 2027.

Speaking at St Juliance grounds in Siaya on Friday, June 14, 2024, where he was crowned by elders to run for the presidency, Ochieng said Kenyans expected to reap big from the current government but they have been let down.

“We thought that the president would live by his campaign promises but he turned against those who entrusted him with the post. He has gone to the extent of imposing a tax on Kenyans yet he had sworn to reduce taxes,” Ochieng said.

David Ochieng’s bid

The Ugenya legislator stated that his presidential bid is unstoppable.

“It is so sad that the majority of leaders are settling for smaller things like being the Nyanza or Luo Kingpin yet other regions including central are prodding Ndindi Nyoro while Rift Valley is settling for Kipchumba Murkomen,” he added.

Ochieng says that what the Luo Kingpin are fighting for does not have a budget meant to facilitate infrastructure or implement programs aimed at transforming the lives of the Nyanza people.

MDG recruitment exercise

Ochieng who kicked off the MDG recruitment drive regretted that the Luo community was best at fighting deputy presidents of every regime at a time they should strategize on how to form the government.

“The seat has been elusive for Raila and every time Baba has a handshake with the presidents, luos end up mocking or attacking the deputy presidents. It happened during the Uhuru-Ruto era and it is happening during Ruto-Rigathi era,” Ochieng said.

“We are aware that their feuds are likely to push Ruto to Nyanza for a political partnership and that won’t be easy,” he added.

Ochieng says that he is angling for the top seat to make other tribes feel they are part of this country.

“Currently, the feud between President William Ruto and his deputy Rigathi Gachagua is about resources. As we speak, Rift Valley has benefitted from large kilometres of tarmac roads followed by the Central region, while Nyanza only has 300 Kilometres of tarmac.

“In Nyanza, our problem is not ODM or Raila Odinga, we just want our share of the national cake. As taxpayers, we need to have infrastructures implemented in all parts of the country,” Ochieng said.

Ochieng on joining gov’t

Ochieng said he joined the government to establish its strengths and weaknesses so that when he starts campaigning for the top seat, he knows areas to capitalise on.

“Come 2027, Ruto will not be declared president if he is part of the contenders. There are areas the president has failed Kenyans and it is going to haunt him during his re-election campaigns,” Ochieng said.

Ochieng who later addressed a crowd at Siaya CBD said Raila mentored him well, he added that he has mastered his footprints.

“I know areas to invest in to get what I want. Wooing electorates is part of my strategy and I have earned positions in areas perceived not to be my strong-holds,” he added.

Ochieng noted that the fore-fathers’ grounds for capturing power were pegged on eradicating poverty, illness and illiteracy yet the country is still grappling with challenges, 61 years after Kenya attained independence.

“It’s known by Kenyans that it’s impunity, ethnicity, tribalism and corruption that has sabotaged the achievements of the dreams of the fore-fathers, as MDG, we are going to reverse the trend and ensure it does not hold the dreams anymore,” he said.

“The current regime has ensured ethnicity and tribalism thrived in every sector including in the appointments. In the recent report by TSC, members of the Kalenjins form the majority of teachers recruited. The interim report presented to the select committee of the National Cohesion and Equal Opportunity by TSC boss Nancy Macharia said the commission recruited a total of 3600 teachers.”

He also vowed to slay the corruption dragon which he claimed was capturing the state and deterring it from achieving its promises.

He, at the same time, urged senior politicians in Siaya including Siaya Governor James Orengo to back him up to deliver Nyanza from the many economic bondages.

“The four Luo Nyanza counties score very poorly on most if not all the human development indicators such as life expectancy, education and purchasing power parity. This is certainly very sad for there was a time when the lake region was deemed as the little paradise west of the Rift Valley.

“While other regions like Mount Kenya have their economic mainstay; coffee and tea form part of their economic and political discourse, the lake region has not a single crop or product to boast of. We killed cotton farming and sugarcane farming went to the dogs,” he remarked.

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