Embakasi East MP Babu Owino has broken his silence over his absence from the joint United Democratic Alliance (UDA) and Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) parliamentary group (PG) meeting held on Monday, August 18, at State House. The meeting, convened by President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga, was seen as a landmark step towards cooperation between the government and the opposition. However, Owino’s absence raised questions about his allegiance to ODM and his stance on the emerging political alignment.
Speaking on Thursday, August 21, the second-term legislator reaffirmed his loyalty to ODM and to Raila Odinga but expressed dissatisfaction with how the broad-based government (BBG) agreement was reached. He alleged that he was sidelined during the drafting of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report and the subsequent ODM-UDA consensus on the BBG.
“I respect Raila Odinga, he is my party leader, but when the NADCO report was being drafted, when there was an agreement between ODM and UDA on the BBG, I was not consulted,” Owino said. “As a Member of Parliament, I ought to have been consulted because I represent the views of my constituents. Therefore, when a meeting is called, if they didn’t consult me then, why do they want to consult me any further?”
Owino insisted that ODM remains a democratic party where divergent views are respected, adding that he would not hesitate to criticize government actions he perceives as oppressive. “Raila has mentioned that within ODM, people have democratic rights to express their views. Babu has the democratic right to stand against any wrongdoing in this country, not to side with the government if it is oppressive,” he said.
During the joint PG meeting, ODM and UDA pledged to put aside partisan differences to focus on national unity. However, dissenting voices such as Owino and Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna continue to question the BBG deal, warning that opposition oversight must not be compromised.
“Parliament should be independent, perform its oversight role, and legislate for Kenyans, not for the executive,” Owino emphasized, signaling his intent to remain vocal in safeguarding parliamentary independence.
