The dramatic incident ensued during President William Ruto's Nyanza visit, seeking to solidify his support from the once the Former Prime Minister, the late Raila Odinga's support base.
President William Ruto, with other Luo Nyanza leaders, during a church service on September 13. PCS Suba North Member of Parliament Millie Odhiambo endured a hostile crowd on Sunday, September 13 as she was heckled in Ruto's presence during an engagement with a crowd in Kisumu.
The lawmaker had barely started addressing the crowd once she was given the microphone when the crowd turned hostile , shouting her down and prompting her to address the chaos.
Amid the chaos, the Suba North MP, who has in the recent past publicly criticised the government, reiterated that she was unmoved, and would continue to back the ruling party 'on her terms'.
"I am supporting President William Ruto, but in my own way, and in my own terms," Millie Odhiambo stated.
Screengrabs of Suba North Member of Parliament Millie Odhiambo addressing the public while being heckled at in Kisumu County UDA-ODM grassroots meeting on Sunday, September 13. PCS "You know you cannot threaten me with your heckling and booing. I was born a tough-headed girl, and nothing in this place can threaten me," Odhiambo added.
As the dramatic scenes unfolded, Suna East Member of Parliament Junet Mohamed, who was the event’s master of ceremonies, was forced to take the microphone from Millie Odhiambo to calm the heckling crowd.
The Suba North lawmaker has often been criticised for her impartiality in the political arena for refusing to fully commit to either ODM faction as the party remains sharply divided over President Ruto’s 2027 re-election bid.
On many occasions, such as during a press interview on May 31, the MP has insisted that she belongs to neither camp, remaining simply an ODM loyalist.
“I said clearly that I am not in ODM Linda Ground or ODM Linda Mwananchi but in ODM. I was told I am a fence-sitter,” stated Millie Odhiambo.
Adding, “I am not going to be pushed into a position where I have to choose between Linda Ground and Linda Mwananchi. My position is that I am an ODM member, and I will continue to articulate my views without being put in a box.”
Notwithstanding, she has criticized both sides: opposing Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna's removal from party leadership as the Secretary General, while stopping short of joining his Linda Mwananchi movement, and supporting President Ruto's candidacy while warning that arrogance could damage the broad-based government politically.
She has also been vocal in rejecting ODM's zoning arrangements meant to protect Nyanza strongholds, arguing that parties should compete freely and voters decide.
She herself described her stance as a deliberate "fence philosophy," not indecision but political independence.
