Barely days after the ODM leadership held a fiery press conference warning Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua against visiting Bondo, Kisumu Senator Tom Ojienda has broken ranks, urging tolerance, national unity and political maturity in the wake of Raila Odinga’s death.
Speaking at AIC Church, Arina Estate in Kisumu, during a harambee on Sunday October 26, 2025, Ojienda seemed to have read the country’s mood as well as the Odingas correctly and called ODM leaders to order.
“Let everyone mourn with the Odinga family. Do not stop anyone from visiting Bondo. As we speak, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is in Bondo. Let us focus on building a strong party that will enable His Excellency William Ruto to win in 2027. Let us focus on building a united nation.”
His remarks, delivered from the pulpit, struck a sharp contrast to ODM’s combative posture earlier in the week when the party leadership drew political lines, barring Gachagua and other Kenya Kwanza leaders from visiting Bondo.
The directive, made in reaction to Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga’s remarks on Raila Odinga’s death, has since drawn widespread condemnation as reckless and ethnically charged.
Ojienda’s call for calm and inclusivity therefore landed as both a political and moral counterpoint. It challenged ODM’s current strategy of emotional mobilization, emphasizing instead the need for reconciliation and dialogue across Kenya’s political divide.
By citing Gachagua’s presence in Bondo, the Kisumu senator made a symbolic statement, that grief should unite rather than divide. His tone was measured, yet unmistakably defiant: a reminder that leadership must rise above tribal emotion, even in moments of national mourning.
Political observers say Ojienda’s words reflect a growing undercurrent within Nyanza politics, where leaders are beginning to rethink their place in a post-Raila Kenya. With Odinga gone, the question confronting the region is not merely about succession, but about redefining political engagement with the national government.
“Ojienda is not rebelling, he’s reading the political moment,” said one Kisumu-based analyst. “He knows Kenya is entering a new chapter and Nyanza cannot afford to be left behind clinging to nostalgia.”
The senator’s remarks also align with a broader call from religious leaders and moderates for sobriety in political discourse, urging ODM to honor Raila Odinga’s legacy through unity and tolerance rather than confrontation.
Bishop Syprian Mwalo Kodieny is the presiding Bishop at Mount Moriah International Ministries and a resident of Fort Tenan, Muhoroni Sub County in Kisumu county.
“The unfortunate reality is that most outspoken leaders you see today were elected courtesy of the former prime minister, Raila Odinga. Rather than advancing the politics of unity and inclusion, most chose to advance sycophancy that almost threatened the democratic essence in Orange ‘Democratic’ Movement, ODM.” Bishop Syprian Mwalo Kodieny said.
“The leadership must observe caution, read the mood of the country, a country in mourning and instead, call and promote unity and the peaceful coexistence which Raila Odinga will forever be remembered for,” she further warned.
As the country continues to mourn the passing of its most influential opposition figure, Ojienda’s message from Kisumu may well mark the beginning of a new, more pragmatic tone, one that seeks to heal political wounds rather than deepen them.
