Luhyas told to hold their horses till 2022

From left: Kakamega Deputy Governor Philip Kutima, Governor Wycliffe Oparanya and Lugari MP Ayub Savula on January 31, 2015. PHOTO | ISAAC WALE |

What you need to know:

  • Oparanya asks voters to rally behind Raila in 2017.

Luhyas have been told to forget the presidency until 2022.

Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya on Friday asked residents of the western region to rally behind Cord leader Raila Odinga in the 2017 General Election, then field a candidate in the subsequent election.

The ODM deputy party leader said chances of a Luhya clinching the presidency in 2017 were remote.

According to Mr Oparanya, the next election will be a two-horse race between President Kenyatta and Mr Odinga.

“It is a big dream for anyone to believe that Western can produce a president; we must support Mr Odinga and start preparing for the 2022 elections as a region,” said Mr Oparanya.

“We must shift our focus to 2022 elections since Mr Odinga and Mr Kenyatta will be exiting the political scene,” Mr Oparanya told a rally in Lugari sub-county.

His remarks come as elected leaders from the western region step up a campaign to register six million voters in what is seen as a move to present one candidate who would ride on the numerical strength of the Luhya, the country’s second-largest.

Proponents of the Luhya, Teso and Sabaot (Lutesa) initiative say the registration of voters will strengthen their resolve to vote as a bloc. But Mr Oparanya backed the Lutesa push championed by Lugari MP Ayub Savula.

“It is important to encourage people to register as voters as part of our strategy to win the elections in future.”

But not in 2017, he said, because leaders from Western need to first clean their house.

“Our leaders, including myself, are known for cheap politics and lack of a firm political stand that can make them appealing to the electorate,” he said.

He regretted that the leaders spend time attacking one another at funerals instead of uniting the people and tackling their problems.