Edwin Sifuna’s Linda Mwananchi movement is set for a major planning meeting in Machakos on Sunday, with its leaders expected to review the campaign’s progress, respond to recent disruptions and agree on the next steps as they prepare to challenge the refusal to register the movement as a political party.
The leaders will gather at Stoni Athi Hotel in Machakos County for a strategic retreat that will also focus on the movement’s plans for the coming weeks.
The meeting comes as the group seeks to strengthen its presence after taking its campaign to at least 16 counties since it began its nationwide activities.
Among the issues expected to come up is the disruption that affected the movement’s rally in Homa Bay on August 16, with leaders expected to discuss how they will respond to what happened and how future public meetings can be handled.
Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka said the Homa Bay events would be part of the discussions as the team takes stock of its activities.
“Where did we succeed? Where did we fail? What are the issues? Obviously, on top of the list is our discussion of the issues that happened in Homa Bay,” Onyonka said.
“How are we going to react to it? What is going to happen?”
The leaders will also be briefed by a technical team that has been developing the movement’s messages and working on key areas, including the economy.
Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi said the retreat would provide an opportunity for the team to examine the work already done and prepare for the next round of activities.
“We will receive an update on the progress of the technical team. We will hear where they have reached so far with their work,” he said.
Linda Mwananchi, which is led by Sifuna, the former ODM secretary general, plans to continue with its countrywide campaign after the Machakos meeting.
The movement is scheduled to travel to Meru next weekend, while its leaders are also planning meetings in different Nairobi constituencies before the next major rally.
The Meru visit will follow a series of stops across the country, including Mombasa, Nakuru, Vihiga, Kisumu, Machakos, Kiambu and Kisii.
The campaign also visited Taita Taveta, Trans Nzoia and Bungoma in July as the leaders continued to take their message to different parts of the country.
Linda Mwananchi began the campaign in Busia on February 8 and later held activities in Kajiado, Kakamega, Narok and Nairobi.
The movement’s latest rally was held in Homa Bay on August 16, where Sifuna and his allies faced disruptions.
Alongside its political activities, the group is now preparing for a legal battle with the Registrar of Political Parties, John Cox Lorionokou.
Osotsi said the movement would seek the intervention of the courts after the Registrar declined to register Linda Mwananchi, saying another political party had already been registered using the same name.
“We are going to court because the registrar has refused to register LINDA on grounds that another person has registered a party with the same name, which is not true,” Osotsi said.
Osotsi further accused the Registrar’s office of acting “mischievously”, saying the movement had already reserved the name before seeking registration.
“We want to expose the mischief in that office. We have written to him to give us the particulars of the party he claims is registered as Linda, but he has refused,” Osotsi stated.
The Machakos retreat will therefore come at a time when the movement is preparing to expand its activities while also taking its dispute over registration to court.