ODM grassroots elections to cost Sh220 million

 

Orange Democratic Movement grassroots elections will cost  Sh220 million, Star can authoritatively report.

The party is planning to hold the elections all the way from the polling stations to the national office, an exercise it hopes will not only strengthen its structures but also provide fresh energy going into the 2022 elections.

Last week, the party’s National Election Board presented Sh220 million budget to the Secretariat as plans are at an advanced stage to kick start the exercise from this month.

The amount is expected to facilitate elections amongst its three million supporters according to the ODM register.

The numbers are however expected to rise given that the party concluded its digital registration exercise yesterday.

The digital registration which has been running for three weeks now had netted additional 50,000 members by Friday last week even though the party was targeting additional 200,000 new members.

“The budget we were given was over Sh200 million but we will discuss,” a source told the Star.

The budget will still be tabled before ODM Central Management Committee chaired by Raila for approval.

Star has established that the amount has received a mixed reception at Chungwa House with some senior members questioning the logic behind spending such an amount when the party is months away from expensive presidential campaigns.

The budget is supposed to cater for allowances for the election officials, security, election materials and logistics including transport of the materials to all the polling stations.

Those opposed to the huge spending argue that the money should instead finance the resource-intensive presidential contest where the party will be fielding a candidate.

ODM national chairman John Mbadi told the Star that the budget will be rationalized once it lands before CMC.

“We will look at it with an accountant background, we will rationalize it. We can still do the exercise at a cheaper cost,” Mbadi said on phone.

The countrywide exercise will run from this month and April. NEB is expected to give specific dates for the polls.

Initially, the party had planned to conduct a harmonization exercise but the Catherine Mumma led Board abandoned the idea after a February 15 meeting with the National Executive Committee meeting chaired by Raila at a Nairobi hotel.

The planned polls will not only enable elected officials to run the outfit for the first time but will also put behind the ugly scar 2014 Men in Black saga that dented the image of the party to date.

During the inauguration of the new election Board chairperson Catherine Mumma, Raila recalled the instance as the darkest moment for the party.