Ongoro ditches ODM for Nasa affiliate ANC
Nominated senator Elizabeth Ongoro on Friday quit ODM and accused the party officials of mistreatment.
Ms Ongoro joined Mr Musalia Mudavadi’s ANC, an affiliate party in the opposition coalition Nasa, to which Mr Raila Odinga’s ODM also belongs.
“My fate in ODM was sealed a long time ago,” Ms Ongoro said. “What the disciplinary committee has announced was just a pre-determined outcome from a process to justify my victimisation.”
The senator was this week fined Sh1 million by the party’s disciplinary team and asked to vie in a constituency other than Ruaraka. ANC secretary-general Godfrey Osotsi handed her a party’s life membership card.
‘READY FOR NOMINATIONS’
“I am ready for nominations. I have never asked for an easy ride. All I want is a free and fair process,” Ms Ongoro said when asked whether she will contest the primaries.
The fiery senator accused officials she said had plotted to deny her the ODM ticket for the Ruaraka parliamentary seat in favour of incumbent Tom Kajwang’.
“Now I have moved to ANC, and I am fully in Nasa. I am a victim of circumstance. There is a cartel that has midnight meetings and imagines it can decide the political destiny of people. Look at me: I am not a bitter woman. I believe in Nasa but I will not give Kajwang’ the benefit of using other means to be the only candidate,” she said at Amani House.
TORTUROUS JOURNEY
For Ms Ongoro, on Friday’s action was a culmination of what she said had been a torturous journey for her in the Orange party.
When she announced her bid over a year ago, she told journalists she was threatened numerous times, cases which she reported to the party.
“Nothing, absolutely nothing, was done. The last straw was in a well-orchestrated scheme to throw me out,” said a teary Ongoro.
In the scheme, she said, she was painted as a violent woman, with her supporters being linked to the roughing up of ODM executive director Oduor Ong’wen. She denied those were her supporters.
“I want the media to help me here. Run the clips. Let us see the people there. There were many aspirants on that day coming to complain about their own issues. I only came with my sister and my bodyguard. How people decide to load everything that happened on me, is just part of the scheme,” said Ongoro who entered Amani House with busloads of chanting supporters.
She said she will neither apologise nor pay the Sh1 million fine, saying she was the victim. She promised Mr Kajwang’ a bruising battle for the Ruaraka seat in August.