ODM Party Leader Dr. Oburu Oginga now says that the “benevolent dictator” remarks he said uring the presidential assent to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Bill 2026 at State House, Nairobi, were taken out of context.

In a statement, DR. Oburu accused a section of the media of delibrately sensationalising the phrase he used metaphorically, and intepreting it literally that he was advising President William Ruto to retreat from democratic governance.

“This interpretation is entirely inaccurate and misrepresents the core message I delivered,” Dr. Oburu says.

According to the Siaya Senator, he used the term strictly as a political science metaphor to describe the absolute courage, administrative firmness, and unwavering resolve that President Ruto needs to enforce tough, longterm economic reforms in the country.

The passage of the Sovereign Wealth Fund Bill 2026, Dr. Oburu says, represents a historic milestone that requires the government to aggressively safeguard national resources for future generations.

“To break the cycle of economic stagnation and heavy external debt, the leadership of this nation must remain completely unswayed by short term political populism. This level of uncompromising legislative and execution discipline is what transformed developing nations like Singapore into global economic powerhouses,” Dr. Oburu adds.

An unshakable commitment to constitutionalism

Dr. Oburu has assured that under his leadership, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Party remained the foundational bedrock of the second liberation and democratic governance in Kenya.

While advocating for firm executive execution, Dr. Oburu posited that he does not and will never endorse the subversion of human rights, the silencing of political dissent, or the weakening of state institutions.

“True leadership means utilizing constitutional powers decisively to pass policies that yield maximum benefits for ordinary citizens, even when those decisions face short term resistance.”