Fresh cracks emerge in UDA as Mt. Kenya MPs demand Hassan Omar resignation

Fresh cracks have emerged within the ruling UDA party after a section of MPs from the Mt. Kenya region called for Secretary General Hassan Omar to resign over remarks they termed ethnic, reckless and dangerous.

The lawmakers, led by Kiambaa MP John Njuguna Wanjiku, Thika Town MP Alice Ng’ang’a and Laikipia Woman Representative Jane Kagiri, accused Omar of fueling ethnic hostility through comments they said unfairly targeted the Kikuyu community.

Speaking during a press address on Wednesday, the leaders dismissed the apology and clarification issued by the UDA Secretary General on Sunday, insisting the remarks had already caused damage and heightened political tensions within the country.

“We flatly reject the statement of clarification and apology issued by the UDA Secretary General Hassan Omar on Sunday. An apology cannot erase or excuse calculated ethnic profiling,” Kagiri said.

“The inflammatory remarks made by Omar in Mombasa were targeted, vilifying and scapegoated the Kikuyu community under the guise of addressing historical land injustices, thus making them dangerous, reckless and explicitly designed to incite ethnic animosity.”

Kagiri said leaders would not remain silent while communities were being profiled on the basis of ethnicity, adding that every Kenyan has a constitutional right to live and work in any part of the country without intimidation.

“Kenya is a constitutional democracy where every citizen has the right to live, work, own property and do business anywhere across the 47 counties without fear of being targeted,” she added.

The MPs maintained that Omar’s apology was insufficient and said they were only interested in his immediate resignation from the powerful party position.

“As leaders we demand immediate resignation; we do not want explanations. We have rejected the half-hearted apology, we demand nothing less than the immediate unconditional resignation of Hassan Omar as the Secretary General of the UDA party,” Kagiri stated.

Wanjiku warned that the Mt. Kenya leaders were prepared to escalate the matter to President William Ruto if the party failed to act against Omar.

“We’ll even petition the President himself to make sure that if Omar doesn’t resign, we cannot continue to be members of UDA if he continues to be the Secretary General,” said Wanjiku.

“Even members of our own community have resigned because of profiling certain communities, so this must be the decision of UDA.”

Ng’ang’a said Omar had already lost the confidence of a section of UDA members and should step aside before causing more divisions within the party.

“As members of UDA, we’re not comfortable if he continues sitting as our Secretary General. We’re telling you enough is enough; pack your things, leave our party, we have other competent people who can take us to the next level,” she said.

“As we approach the 2027 elections, we cannot have you as our Secretary General if you don’t even know how to carry yourself or speak to your members and the rest of the Republic.”

The dispute now exposes growing tensions inside the ruling party, with leaders from the Mt. Kenya region openly turning against one of UDA’s top officials over remarks they believe promoted ethnic profiling at a politically sensitive time.

Omar had issued an apology on Sunday following criticism over comments he made during the recent nationwide fuel strike protests.

In the statement, he said the remarks had been misunderstood and taken out of context, insisting he never intended to insult or target any community.

He explained that the comments were made within the context of his long-standing advocacy on historical land injustices affecting the Coast region and were not meant to create hostility among Kenyans.

“My comments were never intended to demean, offend, or target any community,” he said.

“To all those who may have been offended, I sincerely regret the misunderstanding and extend my apology.”

Omar faced backlash over comments made during the protests in which he accused sections of the transport sector of bias and warned that action would be taken against leaders he claimed were inciting unrest.