By Kepher Otieno - Reporter
Kenya, 20 December 2025 - Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi has made one of the strongest cases yet for Nyanza’s continued alignment with President William Ruto’s administration, arguing that the region lacks both the resources and time to mount a viable opposition campaign ahead of the next general election.
Speaking while in Kisumu County, CS Wandayi said the Luo community must reassess its long-standing opposition posture and focus on extracting tangible benefits from government.
“We must establish the objective interest of the Luo. Why have we for many years been in opposition? What were we fighting for? Let’s rethink,” he said.
Wandayi dismissed suggestions that Nyanza could successfully mobilise against President Ruto within a year to the elections.
“There is nobody who can marshal a campaign against Ruto in Nyanza now and win,” he said, adding that the pragmatic option was to back Ruto for a second term and position the region for future leadership after his tenure.
Invoking the late ODM leader Raila Odinga’s political legacy, Wandayi argued that Raila had deliberately guided the community into government.
“Raila defined what was beneficial to the community. He took us to the government and that’s where we are now. We must stick in government. No excuse,” he said, warning against what he described as a return to “endless opposition without any gain.”
His remarks framed continued support for the broad-based government (BBG) as both strategic and irreversible.
“We can’t be nudged to apologise for defending the government where Raila left us, just to please a few egocentric individuals who want to take us back to 'Misri' when we are already in Canaan,” Wandayi said, making it clear that voices pushing for a return to opposition were, in his view, “misplaced.”
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Another top echelon with the same view is ODM chairperson and Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, who has been consistently calling for unity and discipline within the community.
“This is the defining moment for us as a community to pull together and stop dissenting,” she said, urging Nyanza leaders to remain steadfast in government.
She has since announced plans to lead a mass voter registration drive in 2026 targeting 1.5 million new voters in the region, signalling that electoral strength would be used to negotiate influence from within power rather than outside it.
Kisumu Woman Representative Ruth Odinga supports continued backing of the BBG but cautions that ODM itself must be strengthened.
She argued that unity was key to securing a bigger share of government positions in 2027, including more Cabinet Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and parastatal heads. However, she rejected claims by some UDA leaders that the party would field candidates across all Nyanza zones, insisting such a move would undermine coalition logic.
Senior ODM figures, including Kisumu Senator Prof Tom Ojienda, MPs Rozaah Buyu, Joshua Oron and Jared Okello, also backed Wandayi’s stance, pledging support for Ruto’s administration and a second-term bid. ODM leader Dr Oburu Oginga has called for unity and reconciliation with dissenting voices ahead of the 2027 polls.
There is growing consensus among Nyanza’s political elite that influence is best pursued from within government rather than through opposition.
Whether this message resonates at the grassroots—where skepticism toward Ruto has historically been strong—remains the key political test.
