Chaos Erupts in ODM as Joho and Abdulswamad Go Head-to-Head in Explosive Coast Power Fight
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) is facing renewed internal turbulence in the Coast region after leaders allied to Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho issued stern warnings against attempts to sideline him from shaping the party’s future direction and its role in President William Ruto’s broad-based government.
The confrontation erupted during ODM’s 20th anniversary celebrations in Mombasa, where Joho’s supporters presented him as the region’s political fulcrum and insisted he must retain a central role in decisions concerning the party. They argued that his position in government was not self-appointed but entrusted to him directly by the late opposition chief Raila Odinga.
Joho’s camp accused unnamed figures of working to diminish his influence at a time when ODM is deeply divided over whether to continue participating in the Ruto-led broad-based administration or reassert its identity as the leading opposition formation.
Coast MPs: “All Roads to ODM’s Future Pass Through Joho”
Mvita MP Mohamed Soud Machele led the charge, making clear that Joho’s involvement in government was part of Raila’s final political strategy.
“We as Coast region people, we have our party leader Hassan Joho who is in government,” he told the gathering.
“He is not there because he wanted to. He is in the broad-based government because he was appointed through the efforts of the late Raila Odinga.”
Machele insisted that Joho had for years carried ODM’s political weight in the Coast and must therefore remain central to any debate on the party’s future.
“If there is any talk about the future of the party, one must pass through Hassan Joho. He is our leader,” he said.
Likoni MP Mishi Mboko defended both Joho and Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir, urging ODM figures to avoid divisive rhetoric that undermines regional unity.
“We as the people of the Coast region led by Hassan Joho and Abdulswamad Nassir are saying that our party is ODM — the party that built us,” she said.
Joho Issues Warning: “You Pursue Me, I Will Pursue You”
When Joho took the stage, he vowed to confront any internal sabotage head-on, warning that he would not allow his political sacrifices to be taken for granted.
“We will square it out. You pursue me, I will pursue you,” he declared, in remarks widely interpreted as a direct challenge to ODM members seeking to weaken his standing.
Mboko, defending his loyalty to Raila, said Joho remained committed to the former ODM leader until his final moments. She urged unity as the party eyes the coming Magarini by-election.
“Let us stop the back and forth. Let us be united and uphold Raila’s ideals,” she said.
“Baba left us under the umbrella of Oburu Odinga, who has wisdom, and we will wait until 2027 to chart our way forward.”
Kisauni MP Bedzimba Juma reminded members that ODM’s roots extend far beyond the Coast.
“ODM has supporters from Turkana to Kiunga up to Lunga Lunga. It is a national party,” he said.
“For over 20 years, the Coast region has never abandoned Raila at any point.”
He credited Joho with securing that loyalty.
“All this was made possible through the leadership of Hassan Joho. He deserves respect, and we will follow his direction,” Bedzimba added, noting that Raila left them “under the broad-based government,” where they would remain “until otherwise.”
Mombasa Woman Representative Zamzam Mohamed echoed the warnings, insisting Joho must not be undermined.
“Here in the Coast region our leader Hassan Joho loved Baba and stood with him,” she said.
“Joho must be respected. We will respect the one who respects him and do away with anyone who disrespects him.”
ODM’s Deepening Rift After Raila’s Death
The Coast leaders’ remarks highlight widening rifts within ODM as the party adjusts to life without Raila Odinga and grapples with competing interpretations of his final political directives.
Key ODM figures currently serving in President Ruto’s government — including Joho, John Mbadi, Wycliffe Oparanya and Opiyo Wandayi — have publicly maintained that they will remain in the broad-based administration, arguing that Raila personally instructed them to support President Ruto.
“I was taken to the government of William Ruto by Raila Odinga. That is where I shall stay,” Joho said during Raila’s burial.
However, a rival faction led by Winnie Odinga, Siaya Governor James Orengo and Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna is pushing for an urgent National Delegates Convention (NDC) to give the party’s grassroots the authority to determine ODM’s next steps.
Winnie Odinga has warned that individuals seeking to manage ODM’s relationship with the broad-based government without proper mandate risk destabilising a political arrangement she described as “complicated.”
“When it came to the matter of this broad-based government, the people of ODM entrusted one person with the management of that relationship, and that person was Baba Raila Amollo Odinga,” she said.
“That relationship is complicated, and therefore we are looking and wondering — those taking it upon themselves to manage it now, are they capable of managing that relationship? That is not a question for me to answer. It is a question for the people of ODM to answer.”
With pressure mounting from both sides, ODM now faces a critical internal reckoning: whether to follow the Coast’s call for continuity under Joho’s leadership within the government, or to heed demands for a grassroots-driven course correction that could see the party reassert its opposition identity.
Also Read: ODM Erupts: Oburu Fires Back as Winnie Odinga Demands Party Break From Ruto Government
Chaos Erupts in ODM as Joho and Abdulswamad Go Head-to-Head in Explosive Coast Power Fight