Ngunjiri Wambugu exposes Raila’s 2027 strategy
Former Nyeri MP Ngunjiri Wambugu has said Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga is offering a non-commitment stance over 2027 to solidify the party’s ambition.
Speaking in an interview on a local TV station on Wednesday, September 24, 2025, Wambugu argued the move is to make sure ODM keeps its broad-based government deal by staying unclear on the 2027 contest.
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“Raila is a brilliant politician and an enigma. He is able to make headlines by making statements that are unclear. That is how successful political parties are made. He did not clarify whether he will run in the presidential race ahead of 2027,” he said.
“Whether Raila runs or not in the next presidential election is a major factor. He will keep his cards close for as long as possible, gather as much support as he can, and use it to maintain his influence and negotiate with whoever becomes the next president.”
It is worth noting that Raila had earlier hinted that ODM would field a presidential candidate in the 2027 elections.
The former legislator added that the current stance keeps President William Ruto in a political quagmire for the upcoming competitions despite his open olive branch to Raila under the broad-based umbrella.
According to him, ODM wants to stay relevant and unpredictable even as it holds to the pact between UDA-ODM chiefs.
“What Raila does is to form a competition. Once he loses, he reorganises with new realities until the next competition. He is telling his people, We cannot make new commitments until we have finished this particular arrangement that we have,” he argued.
“This leaves President Ruto and his team to have to keep taking care of him, because why would you want to commit to 2027 if you are not done here? Once you make it, people will start taking you for granted.”
Wambugu argued that ODM is in a bargaining position to keep the bag of goodies from Ruto’s basket as Raila’s troops reaffirm their loyalty and support to the Head of State.
“He is going to keep reminding them, ‘Yes, we are in a broad-based government arrangement that is working. If you want it to continue working beyond 2027, keep taking care of us. Once you commit, we are with you to the next election, and then you are going to see a pivot from the government to start looking for allies.
Wambugu’s remarks on the broad-based government follow TIFA’s latest report, which revealed that support for the Raila-Ruto partnership has increased.
“Raila does not want a situation where people start taking his party for granted.”
Wambugu’s remarks come amid growing concerns from the two political factions, but ODM Party leader Raila Odinga has stated in many instances that his support for President William Ruto will not go beyond 2027.
“I have not said that I am running, and in my view, we are in 2025, and it is too early for anybody to talk about 2027. We are supporting this government up to 2027. We did not say that we are going to work with UDA beyond 2027; those are issues that we will discuss at an appropriate time,” Raila stated.
