Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna at Stanley Hotel in Nairobi on October 4, 2026, during the unveiling of The Equitable Party.Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna on Sunday unveiled The Equitable Party (TEP) as his political vehicle for the 2027 presidential contest, ending months of uncertainty over the party he would use after his efforts to register the Linda Mwananchi Movement ran into legal and regulatory hurdles.The decision to take over an existing party gives Mr Sifuna a ready-made electoral vehicle as the countdown to the August 10, 2027 General Election gathers pace, while leaving the door open for his preferred Linda Mwananchi brand.In a major step towards his presidential bid, Mr Sifuna acquired the existing outfit with a plan to rebrand it as Linda Mwananchi Movement.The Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) last Thursday approved the reservation of the name Linda Mwananchi Movement (LMM) for 90 days, following an order by the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal.The arrangement means Mr Sifuna's camp can proceed with a registered party while continuing to pursue the name around which the political movement has been built.The launch was attended by the movement's leading figures including Siaya Governor James Orengo, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi and Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka, in a show of support for the senator's presidential bid.From left, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya and Siaya Governor James Orengo at Stanley Hotel in Nairobi on October 4, 2026, during the unveiling of The Equitable Party (TEP).Founded by US-based Kenyan Dr Gilbert Marava Shanga in 2022, TEP's founding leaders stepped aside following negotiations with the Linda Mwananchi team paving the way for Mr Sifuna to take over as party leader.The unveiling came barely a week after the movement unanimously endorsed Mr Sifuna as its leader and presidential candidate for the 2027 contest.The choice of an existing party follows months in which Mr Sifuna and his allies explored several options after the Registrar initially blocked the Linda Mwananchi name.Mr Sifuna used Sunday's event to revisit his frustrations with the registration of Linda Mwananchi Movement and his eventual dismissal from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).He accused the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties of being a major “fraud” in the way it has handled attempts by opposition groups to register or change political parties.For months, the senator's allies had considered taking over existing political parties as a way of securing an electoral vehicle without having to wait for the Linda Mwananchi dispute to be resolved.One of the options was the United Democratic Party (UDP), the party formerly associated with the late Cyrus Jirongo and in which Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya has interests.That attempt, however, encountered objections from officials who questioned proposed changes to its leadership and reports that it could be transformed into a vehicle for Mr Sifuna.An initial plan to rebrand it as the Ukombozi People's Party (UPP) also encountered obstacles further complicating the search for a party.Embakasi East MP Babu Owino (left) and Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna at Stanley Hotel in Nairobi on October 4,2026 during the unveiling of the Equitable Party.For a while, Mr Sifuna's camp was caught between securing an election vehicle, fighting legal disputes over the Linda Mwananchi brand and meeting electoral timelines set by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) ahead of the August 10, 2027 polls.The acquisition of TEP now gives the group an option that does not depend entirely on the outcome of the fight over the Linda Mwananchi name.Mr Sifuna said the party would retain its current name until the next election if the government blocks the proposed rebranding.“We launch our new vessel today only because the house in which Baba left us, was captured by the forces of impunity and regression, in the typical fashion that Baba himself loved to equate to the fable of the camel and the tent. The party will continue with its present identity until the ballots are cast in 2027. If they continue to bring up obstacles as they did before, we will move on because we have a party,” Senator Sifuna said.He said the party would seek to renew Kenyans' belief in constitutionalism and the rule of law while promoting equality, recognition of different groups and equitable representation.“I have no capacity on my own to create a movement. This movement belongs to all of you who have chosen the path of change, and whose struggles and sacrifices have punctuated our journey,” he said.He also used the occasion to outline the political and economic issues he intends to place at the centre of his campaign, including the burden of taxation and the rising cost of doing business.
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