Former Kabondo Kaspul parliamentary aspirant Philip Aroko has called for a shift in Luo political leadership, urging the community to embrace new leaders and move away from what he described as long-serving figures who have failed to deliver tangible results.
In a statement that is likely to trigger debate within Luo Nyanza, Aroko said the future of the community depends on fresh leadership focused on unity and development.
“For Luos to prosper in politics and lift the standards of our people in the future, we must have new leadership in place, not those who have been in the arena for too long with no positive results for our people,” he said.
Aroko also criticized internal political divisions, warning that infighting continues to weaken the community’s political influence.
He referenced past struggles faced by opposition leader Raila Odinga, attributing some of the challenges to internal rivalry.
“We must reject the politics of jealousy, the kind of politics they choked Baba with,” Aroko stated.
He added that previous leaders were more vocal in calling out poor governance, but claimed that current leaders have taken a different approach.
“During RAO’s days, many of our leaders truly spoke out against bad governance, but now they are not even advising the president on this when they need to,” he said.
At the same time, Aroko defended President William Ruto against criticism from sections of Luo leaders, pointing to the inclusion of individuals from the region in government despite the voting patterns in the 2022 General Election.
“The president gave our people responsibilities in his government despite the majority voting against him, so we cannot blame the president for the duties of a CS,” he said.
“We must not allow the president’s name to be tainted unnecessarily,” he added.
Aroko then proposed what he described as a path forward, calling for unity between Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino.
“For Luos, we must unite Dr. Raymond Omollo and Hon. Babu Owino for our future,” he said.
He went further to suggest a long-term political strategy involving President Ruto.
“We should then task the president with mentoring Babu Owino for the presidency after President William Samoei Ruto,” Aroko stated.