ODM party leader Oburu Odinga with UDA party leader , President William Ruto. [File, Standard]
Key political figures from the Mt Kenya region who supported President William Ruto’s election in 2022 skipped the high-stakes three-day joint UDA-ODM leadership retreat in Naivasha.
The meeting was chaired by President Ruto and ODM leader Oburu Odinga and is set to establish frameworks for a power-sharing coalition and outline the 2027 political roadmap.
Notable absentees included Murang'a Governor Irungu Kangata and Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi, fuelling speculation that regional leaders are shifting toward alternative political vehicles ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Members of Parliament elected on the UDA ticket and who have since shifted their political allegiance, and are now backing the impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua also kept off the meeting.
Even Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara, in whose constituency the meeting is taking place, was a no-show.
Despite the smiling faces, cheers and bravado in the meeting held at Lake Naivasha Resort, it emerged that the two parties had major differences one year to the general elections.