Senator Mungatana urges ODM youth to swallow pride for party unity
By Faith Lagat, January 20, 2026Tana River Senator Danson Mungatana has called on the youth within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) to prioritise party unity by making personal sacrifices, including controlling egos and accepting established leadership.
The senator, while speaking in an interview on January 19, 2026, emphasised that internal challenges facing ODM can be resolved through careful management and a willingness to compromise for the greater good.
“I’m giving those two examples to tell our young people within ODM that sometimes it takes sacrifice. You take a bullet for the bigger cause. For that party to survive, somebody has to take the bullet. Some people have to swallow in their pride, control their egos, accept leadership,” Mungatana stated.
Lessons from history
Mungatana illustrated his point with historical examples from South Africa and Tanzania, where smooth leadership transitions were achieved by managing youthful ambitions within ruling parties.
In South Africa, Nelson Mandela limited himself to one term as president from 1994, stepping down as ANC leader two years early to allow Thabo Mbeki to take over, despite Mbeki not being the most popular choice at the time.
He also highlighted that younger figures like Jacob Zuma, who led the ANC Youth League, and Cyril Ramaphosa, head of the powerful COSATU union, were encouraged to wait, with Ramaphosa directed to focus on black economic empowerment.
This approach enabled a stable transition, helping the ANC secure victory in subsequent elections and maintain relative stability.
Similarly, in Tanzania, Julius Nyerere handed over power to Ali Hassan Mwinyi, who then passed it to Benjamin Mkapa. At the time of Mkapa’s selection as CCM candidate, the younger and more popular Jakaya Kikwete was assigned the role of Minister of Foreign Affairs for a decade before eventually becoming president.
These cases demonstrated how parties can navigate generational tensions by urging emerging leaders to accept guidance and timing.
Accepting leadership for the greater good
Mungatana stressed that true leadership involves accepting to be led by others in different contexts, such as elders, county commissioners, or fellow parliamentarians.
He warned against pushing aggressively in ways that could cause an implosion, drawing a cautionary lesson from the original Forum for the Restoration of Democracy (Ford) in Kenya, which fragmented after multi-party democracy was restored, weakening it permanently into factions like Ford Kenya and Ford Asili.
He acknowledged ODM’s significant contributions to expanding democratic space in Kenya through collective efforts under its team-based approach. “It would be sad to see it go,” Mungatana said, reflecting on the disappointment many felt when Ford failed to recover from its divisions.