NAIROBI, Kenya – Kisumu Woman Representative Ruth Odinga has called for a frank and comprehensive review of the implementation of Kenya’s ten-point agenda, warning that progress under the broad-based government remains uneven and has failed to meet public expectations.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, February 3, Odinga said the reform agenda — which underpins the current political arrangement — must be subjected to an honest assessment as the country approaches the March 2026 review milestone.
“As we approach March, the month slated for the review of the ten-point agenda’s implementation, it is important that we evaluate the progress made since March 2025,” she said, describing the framework as the foundation of the broad-based government.
Central to the agenda, Odinga noted, is the implementation of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report.
She acknowledged progress in the reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), following the establishment of a nine-member selection panel as recommended by NADCO.
However, she said several critical commitments remain unfulfilled.
These include the proposed independent audit of the 2022 presidential election and the development of a clear framework for reviewing electoral boundary delimitations.
Odinga also raised concern over the lack of compensation for victims of state violence during demonstrations, describing it as one of the most urgent and unresolved issues under the agenda.
She said the right to peaceful assembly and redress for victims of rights violations were core pillars of the reform process championed by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
According to her, although the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights was tasked with developing a compensation framework, no victim has been compensated to date — a situation she attributed to a lack of political goodwill.
Odinga questioned whether meaningful progress would emerge from the work of the Panel of Experts on Compensation of Victims of Demonstrations and Public Protests, noting growing public scepticism.
She also dismissed claims by some individuals that Raila Odinga privately shared political positions with them, saying such narratives distort his principles and legacy.
“Those claiming that Raila Odinga told them this and that should instead speak about the values he believed in — values clearly captured in the ten-point agenda,” she said, adding that dissatisfaction among Kenyans over its implementation remains widespread.
While reiterating her support for dialogue and negotiations ahead of the 2027 General Election, Odinga cautioned against conflating calls for accountability with opposition to talks.
“I am not against negotiations ahead of the 2027 elections, but that should not stop Kenyans from interrogating the commitments made under the ten-point agenda,” she said.
On governance reforms, Odinga warned that full implementation of parts of the NADCO report could face constitutional and legal hurdles, particularly proposals to create new state offices such as the Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition and the Office of the Prime Minister.
She noted that such proposals raise constitutional questions under Kenya’s 2010 presidential system, similar to unresolved challenges surrounding the one-third gender rule.
She further called for greater scrutiny of inclusivity in public appointments and budgetary allocations, protection of devolution, and increased investment in youth economic empowerment, citing the NYOTA programme as a positive intervention.
Additional priority areas requiring urgent attention, she said, include an audit of the national debt, the fight against corruption, elimination of public resource wastage, and the protection of constitutionalism, the rule of law, press freedom and national sovereignty — including an end to abductions.
Odinga said the upcoming March review offers the government an opportunity to demonstrate tangible reform progress and rebuild public confidence in the broad-based government’s agenda.
