Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Oburu Odinga has defended ongoing government reforms, urging decisive leadership while cautioning against excessive political pressure that, he said, often slows national progress.
Speaking on Wednesday, July 8, during the assent to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Bill, 2026, at State House, Nairobi, Oburu drew from his experience in government to highlight structural challenges that have historically hindered development.
“We have been in government, and I was an Assistant Minister of Finance. We tried to move, but the private interests around who want to benefit from small infrastructure, which does not take the country anywhere, always come in to put pressure on the government, making it not to progress,” he said.
His remarks pointed to what he described as entrenched interests that prioritize short-term gains over transformative national projects, a concern that has featured prominently in Kenya’s policy debates.
Oburu also sparked debate after suggesting that strong leadership is sometimes necessary to push through critical reforms.
“Sometimes there is too much democracy; there should be a little benevolent dictatorship so that some things can move. Mr President, I don't want to say that you should be a dictator; I am not saying that,” he clarified.
The ODM leader further weighed in on the government’s Social Health Authority (SHA), defending it against mounting criticism from sections of the public and policy analysts.
“But some of these things, like SHA, I think critics don't go into the details of what is happening. It is a very big transformation towards what we have been calling universal health care,” he said.
According to Oburu, the programme represents the closest Kenya has come to achieving universal health coverage, noting that millions of Kenyans have already enrolled.
“We have covered now more than 30 million Kenyans, and they have registered for SHA and I think being bold and sometimes unpopular is not bad. Being popular sometimes does not help people,” he added.
He expressed confidence that public opinion would eventually shift as the benefits of the reforms become more evident.
“I know people will realise very soon that some of these moves are very helpful to our country,” Oburu said.