Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa is at the centre of ridicule after a video showing him humiliating a man during a church fundraiser went viral.
In the clip, Barasa rejects the man’s contribution, implying that his Sh2,000 donation was too small.
The man approaches the MP, who appears to be coordinating the collection, with some money at hand. Shortly after the MP notices him, he enquires what the money is for, before sending him away.
“Hiyo enda weka pale kwa sadaka na ukae chini,” he is heard telling off the man, who is part of a queue lining up to donate.
Dejected and visibly humiliated, the man struggles to wear a smile as he walks away amid claps and muffled laughter from the crowd.
Kenyans online reacted overwhelmingly to the video, many calling out the legislator and sending goodwill messages to the unidentified man.
“Those clapping are the actual problem,” wrote one on Instagram.
“This is very wrong, may God bless this man,” added another.
The incident follows another high-profile case in which Busia Governor Paul Otuoma is being sued by a bodaboda rider, Yusuf Suleiman, for allegedly kicking him in the groin in a video that also went viral.
Barasa, a first-time MP elected on a Jubilee Party ticket, has a history of controversies.
According to his parliamentary profile, Barasa served in the Kenya Air Force, rising to the rank of captain.
In 2018, he faced allegations of refusing to pay a Sh1 million furniture debt to Nairobi businessman Dan Simiyu, allegedly issuing a fake local purchase order.
In 2021, he was captured on camera slapping local artist Steve Kay at Baptist Lurare Primary School in Kamukuywa ward after a dispute over payment for classrooms built under the Kimilili Constituency Development Fund. Barasa was arrested and charged with assault but later released on bail.
In a separate incident in August 2022, Barasa was accused of fatally shooting Brian Olunga, an aide to political opponent Brian Khaemba, at a polling station.
The High Court, however, later dropped the murder case in 2023.
