Busia Woman Rep Catherine Omanyo sat down for an explosive interview on Wednesday night, February 25, 2026, to defend her controversial promotion to acting Secretary General of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).

The move follows the shock ouster of the combative Nairobi Senator, Edwin Sifuna, on February 11, 2026.

Amid whispers that she was merely a ‘Luhya replacement’ used to cushion the blow of Sifuna’s exit, Omanyo said that her appointment was based on merit, potential, and the personal trust of the late party leader, Raila Odinga.

“It just happened that I was the deputy secretary general at that time… I have been for the last three and a half years,” Omanyo declared during a TV interview, visibly bristling at suggestions she lacked the pedigree for the top job.

Responding to critics who claim party bigwigs used her ethnicity to swap one Luhya leader for another, she was blunt:

“I wasn’t just picked from the streets and placed there. Baba never looked at using tribal cards. He saw something in me; he actually placed me there for a reason. The potential I have, I am equal to the task.”

The leadership vacuum in ODM has sparked a civil war between two factions: the ‘Linda Ground’ team led by party leader Oburu Oginga, and the ‘Linda Mwananchi’ movement fronted by the ousted Sifuna.

Party insiders suggest Sifuna was purged for his relentless attacks on President William Ruto’s administration – rhetoric that spewed confusion, while other ODM elites negotiated a broad-based cooperation deal with the government.

However, Omanyo’s path to the Secretary General’s office remains blocked by a legal freeze.

On February 12, 2026, the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal (PPDT) halted her formal takeover, keeping Sifuna in the role, at least on paper, until a full hearing scheduled for Thursday, February 26, 2026.

The internal rift has reached such heights that Oburu Oginga recently mocked Sifuna’s legal challenge, labelling him a ‘Court SG’ while referring to Omanyo as the ‘Party SG’.

For Omanyo, the acting label isn’t enough. She confirmed her intention to defend the position permanently at the party’s National Delegates Conference (NDC) in late March.

“The matter is at court, I don’t want to elaborate on it,” she said with a smirk, but her message was clear: she has occupied the seat, she likes how it fits, and she has no intention of vacating it for her former boss.