Nairobi Senator and ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna has publicly declared the working agreement between the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) as defunct, citing continued police brutality and loss of lives during public protests.
The MoU, signed on March 7, 2025, by President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), was intended to address Kenya’s mounting political, social, and economic challenges. Central to the agreement was a mutual pledge to end police violence during protests and safeguard Kenya’s democratic space.
Speaking during a Citizen TV interview on Tuesday night, Sifuna said the agreement hinged on two key pillars: the preservation of life and the promotion of democracy. According to him, the government has failed to uphold the former.
“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,” Sifuna stated.
He cited the recent death of Albert Ojwang, a teacher and blogger who reportedly died while in police custody, as the breaking point. “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 lamented.
While Sifuna acknowledged that the democratic process remains intact—with preparations for the 2027 elections underway—he expressed frustration that the lives of ordinary citizens are still at risk, making the spirit of the agreement meaningless.
He also revealed that he declined to join a proposed team to review the implementation of the MoU. “I respectfully asked to be left out of that team because I have already publicly declared the MoU dead. I am not a mortician,” he said.
The original agreement had included promises to allow peaceful protests, offer amnesty to charged demonstrators, and compensate victims. However, with continued reports of police violence, ODM’s leadership appears increasingly disillusioned.
Sifuna’s remarks mark a major setback in the political truce between Kenya’s two major parties, casting doubt on the future of bipartisan cooperation.
