- A video that went viral showed Salasya being blocked and roughed up by the county enforcement officers from attending a campaign rally.
- He accuses Oparanya of forming his line-ups comprising only ODM candidates despite he being in Azimio secretariat.
Mumias East DAP-K parliamentary candidate Peter Salasya has accused ODM deputy leader Wycliffe Oparanya of bullying parties affiliated to Azimio.
This comes as sibling rivalry between member parties takes a toll on the political formation 40 days to the August 9 polls.
Salasya on Monday said Oparanya had formed his line-ups comprising only ODM candidates despite he being in Azimio secretariat.
He further said the Kakamega governor has been sidelining candidates from other Azimio affiliates in Azimio meetings.
“He only introduces ODM candidates and fails to even recognise candidates from DAP-K and UDP who attend the meetings,” he said.
“My support for Raila Odinga for presidency remains strong in my heart, despite Oparanya's frustrations of bullying other parties in Azimio in Kakamega," Salasya said.
"I will not, [therefore], get discouraged by Oparanya trying to discredit my candidature in Mumias East.”
A video that went viral showed Salasya being blocked and roughed up by the county enforcement officers from attending a campaign rally addressed by Oparanya at Khushikulu on Saturday.
In the video, Oparanya is heard complaining that Salasya waited for the meeting to progress so he could come in with motorbike escort to court attention.
The Kakamega governor neither answered calls nor responded to text messages sent to his cell phone.
However, Salasya said he will continue attending all Azimio rallies in the county.
He said that Oparanya should resign from Azimio secretariat and start planning for ODM rallies because this will cost the coalition party seats.
Shinyalu MP Justus Kizito, who is defending his seat on a DAP-K ticket, condemned the attack on Salasya, saying he had a right to seek an elective seat like any other Kenyan.
“These attacks on DAP-K amounts to Azimio fighting itself to the advantage of the opponents,” he said.
Oparanya is the head of the Western Azimio One Kenya presidential campaigns.
Azimio is in the process of rationalising its candidates to ensure it presents a single candidate for every elective seat to avoid unhealthy internal competitions.
(edited by Amol Awuor)