MEET THE STRUGGLERS AS ODM MEMBERS LAUNCH PLATFORM TO WOO THE YOUTHS

As the race to the 2022 General Elections hots up, members of the ODM party have launched the Strugglers Movement, to rally up small and medium-sized businesses as well as the youth, ahead of the polls.

The lobby group, in a press briefing on Sunday, said Kenya is a struggling nation that is currently battling challenges in education, unemployment and health.

And although the movement did not openly state their political affiliation, their tenets are strikingly similar to those of Deputy President William Ruto’s hustler movement that promise to focus on those at the bottom rungs of Kenya’s economic ladder, and the jobless youth.

“We have launched The Strugglers Movement, a national platform that is free from tribalism, class divisions of haves & have nots, negative ethnicity & discrimination of any form,” Kamukunji parliamentary seat hopeful Alinur Mohamed said on Sunday.

“We are going to build a nation that is desired by the people who struggle daily for a better country,”

During the briefing, the movement premiered their official logo- a capital R etched on a purple background.

Most people were quick to notice that the orange and purple colours and the logo are eerily similar to those of ODM leader Raila Odinga.

But according to the group, the colours and logo are purely coincidental and are not indicators of the movement’s political leaning.

“We are not a political group, this is a movement for young people, we are not supporting anyone,” the lobby group said on Sunday.

“The R you are seeing, means real, kama hujaona hiyo real, sisi tunasema the struggle is real,”

That notwithstanding, the lobby group said it is keen on joining a political organisation that promises to provide a better environment for businesses to thrive.

On Monday, during a panel discussion on Citizen TV’s daybreak, Nyeri speaker John Kaguchia poured cold water on the movement, saying its members, who appeared well-fed and clothed did not cut the image of Kenyans who were struggling with anything.