IN SHORT: Hours after Kenya’s former cabinet secretary for interior Fred Matiang’i jetted back into the country, a screenshot of a post labelling him as corrupt went viral. The post seemingly came from former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua. However, it has been fabricated.
A screenshot of what appears to be a Facebook post by Kenya’s former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua warned Fred Matiang’i against dividing the opposition using the money he stole as a minister.
The screenshot, going viral on Facebook, reads: “We welcome home Fred Matiang'i but we decisively warn him not to use the billions he stole with Uhuru Kenyatta in Jubilee Administration to divide opposition. We have already united the people of Mt Kenya region, other political figures and the mighty Gen Z, we are on the right footing so far. We want to tell Matiang'i that he has an option to join and work with us or chart his own way and see his ambitions crumbling.”
It started circulating just hours after Matiang’i landed in Kenya from the US on the night of 17 April 2025. He was received by several political leaders, including the secretary general of the Jubilee Party, Jeremiah Kioni.
Matiang’i was part of former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta’s cabinet from 2013 to 2022. He first served as cabinet secretary for information, communications and technology. He moved to the education ministry in the same capacity before becoming cabinet secretary for interior.
The Jubilee Party, which was Kenya’s ruling party between 2017 and 2022, has endorsed Matiang’i as its possible presidential candidate. Kenya will hold its next general election in 2027.
Gachagua’s political mobilisation
Gachagua was Kenya’s deputy president from September 2022 until his impeachment in October 2024 after falling out with Kenyan president William Ruto.
Ruto and other leaders, both in government and the main opposition party, had accused him of corruption, inciting ethnic divisions and undermining the government. Gachagua, however, denied all the charges and accused the president of a political witch-hunt.
The accusation of dividing Kenyans along ethnic lines stemmed particularly from Gachagua’s focus on Mount Kenya politics, where he often cast himself as the leader and defender of the vote-rich region.
Since his impeachment, Gachagua has mobilised opposition against Ruto, working with key opposition figures to form an alliance for the upcoming elections.
The term Generation Z, or Gen Z, is used to describe people born during the late 1990s and early 2000s. The generation is politically vibrant in Kenya. In June 2024, it led protests against the finance bill, which included controversial tax hike proposals. They later demanded better governance and Ruto’s resignation.
The screenshot has been posted here and here. (Note: See more instances listed at the end of this report.)
But did Gachagua make these remarks? We checked.
Clues of fake screenshot
We looked for the post on Gachagua’s verified Facebook page but came up empty.
Some of those who posted the screenshot argued that Gachagua had deleted the post after it attracted critical comments. But we could only find one version of the screenshot, which showed 1,100 likes, 237 comments and 19 shares.
With his page boasting over 536,000 followers, we found it strange that only this version of the post was circulating. We would expect other users to take screenshots of it at different times with different engagement numbers.
Two days before Matiang’i’s arrival, Gachagua had stated that he was ready to work with him alongside other political leaders, adding that he was at the centre of the alliance talks. Credible news sites in Kenya reported this here and here. It would be unlikely for him to go back on his statement just two days later, without any evidence of provocation.
Local media have closely monitored Gachagua’s statements since his impeachment. Africa Check did not find any instances where credible media outlets in Kenya reported this statement.
We checked other posts from Gachagua’s social media accounts and found no other post with such aggressive and informal language.
We found no evidence that the politician said this.
The screenshot was also posted here, here, here, here and here.
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