There was confusion on Monday, August 29, after ODM deputy party leader Wycliffe Oparanya endorsed Cleophas Malala for the Kakamega gubernatorial bid through his Facebook account.
Oparanya has been campaigning for OMD candidate Fernandes Barasa to succeed him.
Barasa is facing off with Amani National Congress (ANC) candidate Cleophas Malala in the ongoing polls that were postponed during the August 9, General Election.
Just after voters had begun the voting process, Oparanya’s official Facebook page posted a picture of Cleophas Malala and urged Kakamega voters to vote for him.
“Vote Cleophas Wakhungu Malala,” Oparanya captioned Cleophas Malala’s photo.
However, moments later, the outgoing Kakamega governor dispelled the reports that he had endorsed Fernandes’s bitter rival Cleophas Malala.
He stated that his Facebook account had been hacked by agents of doom and asked Kakamega voters to ignore the post.
Oparanya, an ardent supporter of Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition party further stated that he had made a report to the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and that they were investigating the alleged hacking of his Facebook account.
“This is to notify the general public that my Facebook page has been hacked by agents of doom. Ignore any post on my Facebook page as we await DCI Kenya to handle the matter and restore it,” Oparanya said.
Seven candidates are fighting to succeed the outgoing Oparanya, who has served his constitutional two terms.
Fernandes Barasa (ODM), Shakhalaga Khwa Jirongo (UDP), Suleiman Sumba (Kanu), Cleophas Malala (ANC), Samuel Omukoko (MDP), Austin Otieno (independent), and Michael Osundwa (independent) are among those eying to succeed ODM deputy governor Wycliffe Oparanya.
IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati postponed the elections after a mix-up of ballot papers during the 2022 general election and set 23rd August as the new date for the polls.
The poll agency pushed the date forward again to Monday, August 29, a move which Chebukati said was occasioned by alleged harassment of the commission’s staff in the course of executing their mandate.
