Kisumu County Woman Representative Ruth Odinga has issued a pointed call to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leadership, urging her brother, party chairperson Oburu Odinga, and other senior figures to deliberately create leadership space for young men and women within the party.
In a statement shared on her social media platforms on Sunday, January 25, Ruth argued that ODM risks stagnation if it continues to sideline the youth and treat them merely as a dependable voting bloc rather than equal partners in shaping the party’s future. She warned that growing discontent among young members should not be misread as indiscipline, but as a reaction to long-standing exclusion from decision-making structures.
“The future of ODM does not belong to the next generation; it belongs to the current one,” Ruth stated. “If the youth are rattling the cage, it is because we have kept them outside it for too long.” She stressed that the unrest being witnessed within the party reflects frustration, not rebellion.
The Woman Representative challenged party elders, including her brother Oburu, to respect the energy, ideas and competence of young people by entrusting them with real authority. She questioned whether ODM leaders had reduced youth participation to election-time mobilisation instead of offering meaningful leadership roles and influence.
Ruth further proposed far-reaching structural reforms, including constitutionally protected leadership positions for young people and affirmative action measures to ensure they can fairly compete with veteran politicians and well-connected elites. She argued that listening to youth concerns without handing them power amounts to tokenism.
She also condemned the practice of using young people as political shields during internal party battles, calling instead for a cultural shift that empowers them to actively seek and occupy leadership positions.
Her remarks come amid visible cracks within ODM, with several youthful leaders openly demanding generational change. Embakasi East MP Babu Owino recently said the party should transition to younger leadership, even as rival youth factions continue to back Oburu Odinga. Ruth concluded by urging ODM to reflect the true face of Kenya by fully embracing its young people at the highest levels of leadership.