When President William Ruto made appointments to various boards of state corporations, it did not skip the eyes of keen political observers of one appointment. The appointment of former Chair of Lake Basin Development Authority Odoyo Owidi as the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Lake Victoria South Water Works Development Agency has raised more questions than answers.
To begin with, his appointment according to Kenya Gazette Notice is with effect from the 10th of March 2023 up to the 3rd of December 2023. Of all the appointments President Ruto has so far made to the boards of State Corporations, all have been for three years.
It, therefore, came as a surprise that Mr Owidi’s appointment will last for only nine months and not three years as has been the case with the many appointments the president has made since he took over from former President Uhuru Kenyatta. Sources now say that Owidi who is a big critic of ODM leader Raila Odinga and his family has been rewarded not because of his support for Ruto or because of his political influence but because of hurling insults at Raila and his family.
The big question being asked by many is, was the lack of political clout and pressure from Mr Owidi that forced president Ruto to give him such a short contract? Sources say his appointment was brokered by CS Eliud Owalo who was under pressure from Mr Owidi to give him a job. It is believed that Ruto and Owalo just bowed to pressure to please him hence the reason for the short contract before being kicked out.
Mama Ida Odinga had once attacked Owidi saying he had spent time at her house before the election but had turned against her family after they lost. “He would wake up and have breakfast, lunch and supper at my house and spend the whole day at my office. He is now thankless and talking as if they did not benefit from my family,” she said.
