IN SHORT: A fake “executive order” claimed Kenyan president William Ruto had relocated the country’s capital city from Nairobi to Nakuru. Such a move would be unmissable – it requires a change of law and rigorous public debate. Ignore phony paperwork.
A document circulating on social media platforms WhatsApp and Telegram in Kenya appears to be an “executive order” relocating the country’s capital from Nairobi to Nakuru.
Nakuru is about 150 kilometres to the west of the current capital, Nairobi. It got its city status in 2021.
Extracts of the document posted on Facebook claimed Kenyan president William Ruto had ordered the “relocation” on 13 December 2024 and appointed a team to oversee the transition.
“I, WILLIAM SAMOEI RUTO … hereby order and direct: THAT the Capital City and Headquarters of Government of Kenya shall be relocated from Nairobi City County to Nakuru County as set out in this Executive Order,” the order claimed.
It had what looked like the authentic signature of the president. It was also designed to look like previous executive orders.
Social media users cited the notice on Facebook and on X as they debated the merits of such relocation.
But is the document authentic? We checked.
Cover typo and curious hires
The document cover had a typo in the word “headquarters”, which was misspelt as “headquaters” twice. This is uncharacteristic of official government documents.
The document also had a transition team that included unlikely hires, such as former ministers Raphael Tuju and Fred Matiang’i.
Both publicly opposed Ruto’s presidential ambitions and have subsequently had a frosty relationship with the Ruto administration. It is implausible that they would be hired to midwife such an important move.
Official silence
The relocation of the capital would be big news, given the logistics required to move the government headquarters. But it wasn’t reported in any credible news media in Kenya.
Neither the president, his spokesperson, nor even the government spokesperson have publicly spoken about the relocation of the capital city. The governor of Nakuru, Susan Kihika, and his Nairobi counterpart, Johnson Sakaja, also said nothing about it.
The document was also missing from the official website of the president’s chief of staff and head of public service where previous executive orders were uploaded.
Incorrect procedure
The capital city is designated by the Urban Areas and Cities Act.
“The capital city of Kenya is Nairobi,” the law states.
Relocating the capital, as the fake document claims\, would require a legal amendment in the Kenyan parliament. Currently, no procedure for such a move exists in the law.
Additionally, the cost of building new government buildings and city infrastructure is huge, and none of it is budgeted for, given the country's dire economic straits.
All these show that the document is fabricated and should be ignored.
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.
Add new comment