IN SHORT: Two graphics widely reposted on social media quote former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta as ridiculing president William Ruto’s efforts to fight corruption in government. But there is no evidence for this remark.
In August 2025, a few days after Kenyan president William Ruto established a multi-agency team to fight corruption in government, two graphics quoting former president Uhuru Kenyatta as ridiculing the move began to attract attention on social media.
The graphics quote Kenyatta as saying: “I tried fighting corruption, but I was turned into a public enemy by the very people who were supposed to help me. When I raised concerns that Kenya was losing 2 billion shillings daily, the same individuals who are now loudly complaining about corruption were the ones benefiting. Let them now fight the demon they created.”
Kenyatta served as the country’s president from 2013 to 2022, with Ruto as his deputy. The two later fell out and Kenyatta backed opposition leader Raila Odinga in the 2022 presidential election. However, Ruto won. It remains unclear whether Kenyatta and Ruto have since reconciled.
In 2021, during his presidency, Kenyatta stated that more than KSh2 billion was being stolen daily through corruption, sparking public outcry.
The graphics, dated 20 August 2025, feature the logos of two Facebook pages – 7 News Global and Channel 7 News – which frequently post similar content. Other Facebook accounts have also published the same content.
But are the graphics and the quote legit? We checked.
No evidence
Local media closely follow Kenyatta’s political remarks and report extensively on him. If he had actually made this remark, it would have been widely reported and debated. However, Africa Check found no such reports from credible news outlets in the country.
In the past, pro-government politicians have quickly come to Ruto’s defence when Kenyatta made remarks critical of the government, but this time no politician has appeared to show interest, casting further doubt on the quote’s authenticity.
The former president is active on social media, using his accounts on platforms like Facebook and X to update followers on his engagements. We found no posts about any political event where he might have made the remarks.
Africa Check has previously found a graphic posted by the page Channel 7 News, which quoted a Kenyan politician, to be fake. Other politicians have also labelled posts from this page that appeared to quote them as fake.
We found no evidence to support the claim that Kenyatta made these remarks about corruption.
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