Siaya Senator James Orengo and Rarieda Member of Parliament Otiende Amollo were forced to scamper for safety on Friday afternoon after a function they were attending at South East Alego turned chaotic.
While attending an afternoon reception function following the inauguration ceremony of the area assistant Chief, commotion ensued from the crowd and the next thing heard was gunshots.
The gunshots left everyone in the event scampering for safety, with Orengo and Otiende seeking refuge in a chopper they had used to attend the meeting. The chaos did not end then as rowdy youths kept throwing stones on the chopper, forcing it to take off.
The chaos is said to have been as a result of a disagreement between two parliamentary contestants from Alego.
Alego Usonga MP Sam Atandi addressed the meeting, after which he invited his Nyakach counterpart, and thereafter Rarieda’s Otiende Amollo.
Amollo then invited Orengo to address the crowd. This chain did not settle well with residents, who felt that the group was denying their MP aspirant, Ochongo from addressing them.
They started shouting amid Orengo’s speech, forcing the Senator to give the microphone to Ochongo. It is when the parliamentary aspirant was speaking that commotion ensued, leading to the shootings.
When contacted for his comments, Otiende Amollo accused the area aspirants of causing the chaos, saying that it was Alego politics at play.
Before attending this event, Orengo and Otiendo had attended a burial ceremony in the area. There, the Senate minority leader cautioned members of the Luo community against forming other parties to counter Raila Odinga’s influence in the region.
Rarieda MP echoed his sentiments, saying that there are issues in the community but it should not be a cause of their division.
“There are minor differences in the Luo community leadership but we have to remain united as a community,” Said Otiende Amollo.
