Fact check: Has Oparanya endorsed Malala in Kakamega race?

The endorsement however seemed unusual as the two are allied to rival factions where Oparanya is rooted in the Azimio la Umoja coalition while Malala to the Kenya Kwanza camp.

On his Facebook account on Monday, Kakamega’s Governor Wycliffe Oparanya seemingly endorsed Cleophas Malala’s candidature in the Kakamega race as a photo of the latter was posted on the page under the hashtag #VoteCleophasWakunguMalalah.

This, as the mini-elections for Kakamega kicked off Monday morning following a few false starts as the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) cited errors on the election materials.

The endorsement however seemed unusual as the two are allied to rival factions where Oparanya is rooted in the Azimio la Umoja coalition while Malala is in the Kenya Kwanza camp.
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Might the situation which can be likened to having snowballs in hell be true? Might there have been an erratum while making the post? Or has the account been hacked?

Citizen Digital clarifies on the head-scratcher.

Right after the post appeared on Oparanya’s account, ODM Director of Communication Philip Etale flagged it, confirming that the legislator’s account has been hacked.

He further urged the general public to shut an eye to the post or anything posted on the account contrary to Oparanya’s belief.

“Wycliffe Ambeta Oparanya has reported to me that his Facebook Account has been hacked. He, therefore, appeals to residents of Kakamega County, the ODM fraternity and the general public to ignore anything that is posted on the account that is contrary to his belief,” Etale wrote on Facebook.

Subsequently, Oparanya gave a rejoinder on Twitter saying that his account has been compromised by “agents of doom”, further calling on the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to take action on the matter.

“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 to handle the matter and restore it,” he wrote.

Courtesy Moses Kinyanjui