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Mbadi weighs in on Winnie Odinga’s future in ODM
12th February, 2026 12:46 AM
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary (CS) John Mbadi has weighed in on Winnie Odinga’s future within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), saying party leadership cannot be imposed but must be earned through political growth and strategy.
Speaking during an interview with a local TV station on Wednesday, February 11, 2026, Mbadi was asked about his views on Winnie Odinga and whether she could one day take over the leadership of ODM.
“She is Raila’s daughter,” Mbadi responded, before addressing the leadership question directly. “Does she want to take over ODM? Leadership is not something that you force on someone.”
Mbadi described Winnie as a young, strong-willed leader who currently serves in the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA).
He noted that her political future will largely depend on how she navigates her career.
“Winnie is a young, strong-willed girl, and right now she is an MP (EALA). She can build herself depending on how she plays her politics and get back to the local scene. Later on, she can be somebody big,” he said.
The CS emphasised that leadership within ODM is not limited to the party leader role, noting that one can serve in various capacities within the party structure.
“You don’t have to lead ODM; you can be somewhere in the party. I led ODM as chairman of the party, not as party leader. She could come in as an official of the party.”
Winnie Odinga’s proposal
This comes a few months after Winnie Odinga proposed the formation of a fresh National Delegates Conference (NDC) within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) to determine who will lead the party’s relationship with the broad-based government.
Speaking during ODM’s 20th anniversary celebrations at the Mama Ngina Waterfront in Mombasa on Saturday, November 15, 2025, Winnie Odinga explained that the management of the relationship between ODM and the Kenya Kwanza government had previously been entrusted solely to Raila Odinga because of its complexity.
“I want to tell party leaders that when it came to the matter of the broad-based government, the people of ODM had entrusted only one person with the management of that relationship, and that person was Raila Odinga,” Winnie said.
Winnie raised concerns over those taking it upon themselves to handle the relationship in his absence and emphasised that it is a matter for the party members to decide.
“That relationship is complicated, and we are now wondering about those taking it upon themselves to manage it in his absence. I do not think this is a question for me to answer; it is a question for the people of ODM to decide. That is why I am requesting a fresh National Delegates Conference to see who the party will pick to manage that relationship,” Winnie said.
