Nelson Koech: Sifuna wanted position of Cabinet Secretary in broad-based govt
By Ndiritu Wanjiru, February 5, 2026Belgut Constituency Member of Parliament (MP) Nelson Koech has slammed Nairobi senator and Orange Democratic Movement Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, saying that his decision to oppose the pact between the ODM and United Democratic Alliance is out of personal interest.
Koech has cited that Sifuna was interested in being nominated for the position of a Cabinet Secretary in the Government and became bitter when he could not get it.
Speaking during an interview with a local TV station on Thursday, February 5, 2026, Koech said Sifuna had his interest in mind and sees himself as having been left out in the negotiations of the ODM party engaging in the broad-based government. According to the MP, that is why Sifuna has seemingly been opposed to the decisions of the party in which he is the secretary general.
“Edwin Sifuna had wanted the position of Cabinet Secretary, and when he did not get it, he became a bit giddy. Look at the questions that he poses to those who were picked, especially when they appear before the Senate.”
“They are personal. He looks like an extremely bitter person. I am telling you now that Edwin Sifuna had requested the position of cabinet secretary,” Koech said.
The legislator has said that the party leader of the ODM party, Oburu Odinga, has the right to make political decisions on behalf of the party, and those opposed to the party’s decisions should vacate the party.
Divisions in ODM
Since the demise of the former ODM party leader, Raila Odinga, the party have experienced sharp differences in opinions, particularly concerning the direction the party should take ahead of the 2027 general elections. The leadership of the party have since been seen to have divergent views.
The ODM party is now divided into two factions, with one faction supporting the broad-based government and ready to support the government side and enter into a merger with the ruling party UDA. The other faction is opposed to the move and is of the view that the party should stand on its own and field a candidate in the 2027 general elections.