“World Bank staffer dismissed,” reads the headline on what seems to be a screenshot of a breaking news story on the CNN website, circulating on Facebook in Kenya since January 2022.
The summary adds: “United Nations and World Bank staffer Gachara wa Kamanga has been dismissed over gross misconduct and money laundering allegations.”
Kamanga is standing for election as governor of Kenya’s Nyeri county in the 9 August general elections. He has worked as a consultant for both the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme.
But did CNN really report that he had been dismissed from both organisations for allegations of money laundering and gross misconduct?
News can’t be found
A Google search for the report’s headline, restricted to the CNN website, returns no results. Nor does a query using the site’s own search function. And no other credible media outlet has reported Kamanga’s dismissal.
More than this, the fonts and design in the screenshot are different to those used by CNN.
A TinEye reverse image search reveals the basic format of the screenshot has been used before to make other false claims.
It’s a fake.
‘Our competitors have panicked!’
On 10 January, Gachara’s official Facebook campaign page posted the screenshot with a warning that it was fake.
“Ignore this fake news. Ask them to provide a link to the story. Our competitors have panicked!” the post reads.
For publishers: what to do if your post is rated false
A fact-checker has rated your Facebook or Instagram post as “false”, “altered”, “partly false” or “missing context”. This could have serious consequences. What do you do?
Click on our guide for the steps you should follow.
Publishers guideAfrica Check teams up with Facebook
Africa Check is a partner in Meta's third-party fact-checking programme to help stop the spread of false information on social media.
The content we rate as “false” will be downgraded on Facebook and Instagram. This means fewer people will see it.
You can also help identify false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.
Further Reading
A cloudy outlook? What we are learning about election disinformation in Africa and what you can do about it
As nearly a dozen countries prepare to hold presidential elections, the spread of disinformation is inflaming Africa's political landscape.
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