Why I declared ODM-UDA agreement dead – Sifuna

ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna has explained why he publicly declared the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Orange Democratic Movement and the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) as dead.

Speaking on Tuesday night in an interview with Citizen TV, Sifuna said the agreement was anchored on two fundamental pillars, one of which, he argued, has not been honoured by the current administration.

He explained that the first reason for the MoU was to stop the killings that had occurred during the Gen Z protests.

Sifuna said this violence had continued, citing the recent death of teacher and blogger Albert Ojwang, who reportedly died in a police cell.

The second reason, according to the ODM Secretary General, was to support and strengthen democracy in the country.

He noted that while the democratic process remains intact, particularly the commitment to elections in 2027, lives were still being lost, undermining the spirit of the agreement.

“The reason I declared this MoU dead is because the initial argument for entering into it was twofold. First, it was for the preservation of life; we were losing people unnecessarily. We all agreed that this must stop. We need to stop killing our people," Sifuna said.

“The second reason was to sustain our democratic state. President William Ruto is getting his part of the bargain because democracy is being maintained at least until 2027. But our people are not benefiting; they are still being killed. On the day Albert Ojwang dies in a police cell, for me, this agreement is dead. It doesn’t matter what else you do, Albert will not be able to enjoy any of it,” he added.

The Nairobi Senator further stated that this is why he declined to participate in a meeting proposed to assess the implementation of the agreement between UDA and ODM.

He insisted that, in his view, the agreement signed by Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga no longer holds.

“Recently, we had another meeting, and there was a proposal to form a team to review the implementation of the MoU between UDA and ODM. I respectfully asked to be left out of that team because I have already publicly declared the MoU dead. I am not a mortician,” Sifuna said.

President Ruto and Raila Odinga signed the working agreement on March 7, 2025, at a ceremony held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC).

The MoU aimed to address Kenya’s political, social, and economic challenges in 2025.

As part of the agreement, both leaders affirmed that the right to protest is a constitutional right that all Kenyans must be able to enjoy without interference.

They also pledged to compensate victims of past protests and grant amnesty to individuals charged while exercising their right to peaceful assembly.