Kakamega County ODM Leadership Disputes Justus Kizito's Chairmanship Claims

A section of Kakamega County's ODM leadership has dismissed recent claims by former Shinyalu Member of Parliament, Justus Kizito, who declared himself as the ODM Chairman for Kakamega County.

Addressing members of the press at Lurambi constituency, ODM delegates disputed Kizito's claim to the chairmanship, questioning his membership in the party. They pointed out that in the previous general election, Kizito ran for the Shinyalu parliamentary seat on a DAP-K Party ticket.

"We want to express our concern about the recent absurd statements made by Honourable Kizito Mugali, claiming he is the chairman of ODM in Kakamega County. We want to take this earliest opportunity to remind him that he vied for the Shinyalu parliamentary seat in the 2022 General Election on a DAP-K ticket. The Political Parties Act, number 11 of 2011, clearly states that a person who, while being a member of a political party, joins another political party, is assumed to have resigned from the previous political party," stated Habib Anyolo, Lurambi constituency ODM Chairperson.

Anyolo also questioned Kizito's loyalty, accusing the former MP of shifting allegiance from one party to another throughout his political career. He affirmed that Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa is the County Chairperson and dismissed claims of leadership vacancies in the region.

"The party loyalty of Honourable Kizito's political career is widely known. He was a member of the ODM party in 2013, joined UDF after losing the elections in 2014, joined Jubilee for personal reasons in 2017, and then rejoined ODM, where he won the elections. It is worth noting that after losing the ticket to compete for governorship as well as the ticket to run for Member of Parliament in Shinyalu, he defected to DAP-Kenya. He is not a reliable source and should be the last to discuss party allegiance. That being stated, there is no vacancy in the party in this county," Anyolo said.

Kizito was further criticized for allegedly trying to create disputes within the party. Anyolo maintained that Governor Barasa remains in contact with all ODM members in Kakamega County and advised Kizito to reconsider his position if he wishes to be considered for future leadership roles within the party.

"Kizito should not bring disputes into the party; we don't have any vacancies. Our party's current chairman is Fernandes Barasa, and he is in contact with all ODM members in the county. Therefore, I still encourage Kizito to reconsider his application if he wants to be considered for a position in the future," he added.

Navakholo Constituency ODM Chairperson, Rodgers Wakhisi, also questioned Kizito's party loyalty, advising him to re-register as an ODM member if he wishes to be considered for future party positions.

"All we want is to ask him if he is ready to rejoin the party as a member. Otherwise, he is used to jumping from party to party for his own self-interest, so we urge him to reconsider applying for membership so that he can be considered for the county chairman position in the future," Wakhisi stated.

At the same time, the delegates welcomed Godfrey Osotsi's recent nomination as Deputy ODM Party Leader, pledging to work with him to ensure that the party's activities run smoothly.

Justus Kizito had earlier requested Kakamega County Governor, Fernandes Barasa, who currently holds the ODM chairmanship position in Kakamega County, to clarify when and by whom he was elected to lead the party in the county.