Latest news with #Gachagua
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kenyan MP found in coffee farm after alleged abduction
A Kenyan member of parliament who was allegedly abducted by unknown men after a church service on Sunday is being treated in hospital after being found on a coffee farm, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has said. George Koimburi had been "badly beaten" and was in a "very serious condition" at the Karen Hospital in the capital Nairobi, Gachagua added. A vocal critic of the government, Koimburi is allied with Gachagua, who was impeached by parliament and removed from office last year after falling-out with President William Ruto. The alleged abduction has sparked outrage, with the opposition accusing the government of intimidation. It has not yet commented on the allegation. Police said they were investigating the incident, local media reported. A motorcycle rider who first found Koimburi early on Monday morning is said to have alerted other people and his family, the reports added added. A widely shared video clip showed the MP lying on the ground, his clothes dishevelled and seemingly in pain. On Sunday, Koimburi's wife told reporters that they were outside church, in his Juja constituency in central Kiambu county, when he was grabbed and bundled into a vehicle. Koimburi was reportedly found at a coffee farm in the nearby Ruiru constituency, less than 10km (six miles) from where he had been allegedly abducted. Speaking after visiting him in hospital, Gachagua accused the government of targeting legislators who took a "vocal stand against the government". There has been a wave of abductions in Kenya since mass protests against tax hikes broke out last year. The government has previously denied involvement in the kidnappings. Prominent opposition politician Kalonzo Musyoka said that opposition officials would meet on Tuesday to "assess the current state of political harassment and intimidation in the country by the Kenya Kwanza [governing] regime". He raised concerns over how an MP, who was entitled to security by the police, could "get abducted in broad daylight". "It means Kenyans are on their own," Musyoka added. In February, Koimburi was arrested and charged with forging his academic qualifications. He denied the charge and was released on bail. Police are reported to be also investigating him over allegations of land fraud and misuse of government funds. He denies any wrongdoing. His alleged abduction came weeks after MP Charles Ong'ondo Were was shot dead in the streets of Nairobi by gunmen on a motorcycle. Police said several suspects had been arrested following what appeared to be a "targeted and predetermined" assassination. Many Kenyans are alarmed by the deteriorating security situation. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights says that more than 80 people have been abducted since mass protests broke out last June against an increase in taxation, in what was the biggest challenge to the authority of Ruto's government since it took office in 2022. The commission blamed the abductions on state security agencies, but they denied any involvement. Earlier this month, Ruto said the government had taken action to prevent further abductions, but did not give details. Pressure mounts to probe Kenya police and army after BBC exposé Abductions spark fears of a return to Kenya's dark past 'We live in fear' - forced expulsions taint Kenya's safe haven image Kenyan minister alleges intelligence agency behind his son's abduction Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Africa Daily Focus on Africa
Middle East Eye
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Kenya's former vice president calls for Ruto to be sanctioned over Sudan war
The former deputy leader of Kenya has called for William Ruto, the country's president, to be sanctioned internationally for allowing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries in Sudan to launder money from gold through Nairobi. Rigathi Gachagua was vice president of Kenya from September 2022 until October last year, when he was impeached after falling out with Ruto. During an interview with KTN News this week, he alleged widespread Kenyan complicity in crimes committed during Sudan's war. Gachagua said that when RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo - widely known as Hemeti - was de facto deputy leader of Sudan, Ruto sought to invite him to Kenya. As Hemeti was not a head of state, but a deputy, Ruto could not directly send out the invitation. Gachagua had to extend the invitation, which he did. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters 'Later on, I realised they are doing business,' said Gachagua. 'After some time, it became clear to me that the international community had placed international sanctions against Hemeti because of genocide, killing women, displacing people, and other crimes against humanity.' So when Ruto called on his deputy to once again invite Hemeti, Gachagua refused. 'I told him, 'Mr President, this is a butcher of women and children. He is using our country through your friendship to bring gold from Sudan, clean it in Nairobi, take it to the Middle East, use the funds to buy arms to go and kill people in Sudan',' he said. Sudan crisis: How a parallel RSF government could destroy the nation Read More » As a father and as a Christian, Gachagua stated, he could not comply. An independent inquiry last year found that there was 'clear and convincing evidence' that the RSF and its allied militias 'have committed and are committing genocide against the Masalit', a Black African group in the country. The US also determined that the RSF was perpetrating genocide in Sudan, and sanctioned Hemeti for his role in 'systematic atrocities'. Gachagua said his signature was later forged in an attempt to bring Hemeti to Kenya. When the vice president threatened that he would publicly 'disown' the invitation if Hemeti landed in the country, the visit was halted. After that moment, relations rapidly soured between Ruto and Gachagua. 'The real commander of RSF is William Ruto because for a movement to succeed, it needs money,' said Gachagua. 'The money from gold is being cleaned through Kenya to buy arms to go and kill women and children.' 'Sanction Ruto to stop Sudan war' In February, Kenya hosted a conference that saw the RSF launch a parallel government in the areas it controls. The Sudanese foreign ministry described Kenya's move as a direct intervention in the affairs of another country and a violation of diplomatic norms and the African Union charter. Sudan subsequently suspended all imports from Kenya in protest, describing Nairobi's actions as "tantamount to an act of hostility". 'I want to tell the international community, it is pointless to lay the sanctions against Hemeti. The person they need to levy sanctions against is William Ruto,' said Gachagua. Sudan tells ICJ that UAE is complicit in genocide Read More » 'Sudan will be sorted out because if there are sanctions against William Ruto, he'll stop entertaining Hemeti. 'Gold will stop being processed in Nairobi. There will be no money to buy arms to go and kill children.' In January, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on AZ Gold, a UAE-based gold purchasing company. 'AZ Gold has purchased gold from Sudan, presumably for the benefit of the RSF, and subsequently transported it to Dubai,' the sanctions notice stated. Algoney Hamdan Dagalo, one of Hemeti's brothers, 'maintained access to AZ Gold's bank account in the UAE, which held millions of dollars', according to the US Treasury. Sudan's army-aligned government has accused Ruto of dealing commercially with the RSF. 'It is unfortunate that the Kenyan president has placed his personal and commercial interests with the militia's regional sponsors and the militia's leadership above the historical relations between the two brotherly countries,' the Sudanese foreign ministry said, likely referencing the UAE. On Thursday, Sudan accused the UAE of complicity in genocide at a hearing before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Footage altered to falsely claim Kenya's ex-deputy leader apologised to president in 2025
'Former Deputy Gachagua (Riggy G) has apologised to President William Ruto days into Ruto's historic visit back to Mt Kenya yesterday he was at Nanyuki and nyeri to launch development projects, will these apology calm waters (sic)?' reads an X post published on April 2, 2025. In what looks like a news bulletin by Kenyan broadcaster Citizen TV, the chyron reads 'Gachagua to Ruto: Please forgive me' and 'Former deputy president seeks forgiveness from Pres. Ruto'. Jeff Koinange, a news anchor at the media outlet, appears briefly at the beginning of the clip. Although the accompanying audio sounds like his voice, it is out of sync with his lip movements. 'Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua has apologised to President William Ruto,' Koinange appears to say. 'Days into Ruto's historic visit back to central Kenya, Gachagua bows his head. A public apology watched by the whole nation. Will this apology calm the waters or is it just the eye of the storm? Folks, you can't make this stuff up. This is the story of the hour.' Twenty-two seconds into the video, the clip cuts to Gachagua giving an address. 'To my brother President William Ruto, if in our zeal and commitment to work I have wronged you, please find it in your heart to forgive me. If my spouse in her duties for the boy child and her programme has wronged you in any way, find it in your heart to forgive her,' Gachagua says. 'To our members of parliament, if in the course of duty, through our utterances and actions, we have in one way or another upset you or wronged you, find it in your heart to forgive me,' he adds. Gachagua was impeached and subsequently removed from his role as deputy president on October 17, 2024, after falling out with Ruto (archived here and here). He is now looking to unseat Ruto in the 2027 general election (archived here). Speaking in an interview a day before he began a tour in the Mount Kenya region, where Gachagua comes from, Ruto blamed his ex-deputy for his own downfall. He accused Gachagua of creating conflicts and demanding billions to resolve political tensions in the region (archived here and here). Gachagua, who has been fighting for political supremacy in the region since his ouster, responded by dismissing the claims as lies (archived here and here). The video does not show Gachagua issuing an apology to Ruto amid the tour in his political backyard. AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches on screengrabs from the clip shared on X and the results established that it was created using old, unrelated videos and audio generated with Artificial Intelligence (AI) software. The footage of Koinange seen at the beginning of the clip was originally published by Citizen TV on March 2, 2025 (archived here). The bulletin covered Gachagua's sustained attacks on Ruto. There was no mention of an apology. Comparisons show that the images in the background showing Gachagua, opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka and State House were edited out in the X video. The font used for the chyron is also different in both videos. While the clip of Gachagua's apology is authentic, it is not recent. The footage is from an address he gave on October 6, 2024, at his official Karen residence, days before he was impeached by the Senate (archived here). Gachagua can be seen wearing the same attire in both videos, and the Kenyan and Israeli flags are visible in the background. In the section featuring Koinange, the unnatural pauses in the audio, as well as the fact that it doesn't sync with the journalist's lip movements, are tell-tale signs that it is AI-generated. AFP Fact Check ran the audio from this section through InVID-WeVerify's audio detection tool and the results suggested strong evidence of voice cloning. The rest of the audio from Gachagua's address is authentic. We did not find any credible evidence of Gachagua recently issuing any sort of apology to Ruto.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Footage altered to falsely claim Kenya's ex-deputy leader apologised to president in 2025
'Former Deputy Gachagua (Riggy G) has apologised to President William Ruto days into Ruto's historic visit back to Mt Kenya yesterday he was at Nanyuki and nyeri to launch development projects, will these apology calm waters (sic)?' reads an X post published on April 2, 2025. In what looks like a news bulletin by Kenyan broadcaster Citizen TV, the chyron reads 'Gachagua to Ruto: Please forgive me' and 'Former deputy president seeks forgiveness from Pres. Ruto'. Jeff Koinange, a news anchor at the media outlet, appears briefly at the beginning of the clip. Although the accompanying audio sounds like his voice, it is out of sync with his lip movements. 'Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua has apologised to President William Ruto,' Koinange appears to say. 'Days into Ruto's historic visit back to central Kenya, Gachagua bows his head. A public apology watched by the whole nation. Will this apology calm the waters or is it just the eye of the storm? Folks, you can't make this stuff up. This is the story of the hour.' Twenty-two seconds into the video, the clip cuts to Gachagua giving an address. 'To my brother President William Ruto, if in our zeal and commitment to work I have wronged you, please find it in your heart to forgive me. If my spouse in her duties for the boy child and her programme has wronged you in any way, find it in your heart to forgive her,' Gachagua says. 'To our members of parliament, if in the course of duty, through our utterances and actions, we have in one way or another upset you or wronged you, find it in your heart to forgive me,' he adds. Gachagua was impeached and subsequently removed from his role as deputy president on October 17, 2024, after falling out with Ruto (archived here and here). He is now looking to unseat Ruto in the 2027 general election (archived here). Speaking in an interview a day before he began a tour in the Mount Kenya region, where Gachagua comes from, Ruto blamed his ex-deputy for his own downfall. He accused Gachagua of creating conflicts and demanding billions to resolve political tensions in the region (archived here and here). Gachagua, who has been fighting for political supremacy in the region since his ouster, responded by dismissing the claims as lies (archived here and here). The video does not show Gachagua issuing an apology to Ruto amid the tour in his political backyard. AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches on screengrabs from the clip shared on X and the results established that it was created using old, unrelated videos and audio generated with Artificial Intelligence (AI) software. The footage of Koinange seen at the beginning of the clip was originally published by Citizen TV on March 2, 2025 (archived here). The bulletin covered Gachagua's sustained attacks on Ruto. There was no mention of an apology. Comparisons show that the images in the background showing Gachagua, opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka and State House were edited out in the X video. The font used for the chyron is also different in both videos. While the clip of Gachagua's apology is authentic, it is not recent. The footage is from an address he gave on October 6, 2024, at his official Karen residence, days before he was impeached by the Senate (archived here). Gachagua can be seen wearing the same attire in both videos, and the Kenyan and Israeli flags are visible in the background. In the section featuring Koinange, the unnatural pauses in the audio, as well as the fact that it doesn't sync with the journalist's lip movements, are tell-tale signs that it is AI-generated. AFP Fact Check ran the audio from this section through InVID-WeVerify's audio detection tool and the results suggested strong evidence of voice cloning. The rest of the audio from Gachagua's address is authentic. We did not find any credible evidence of Gachagua recently issuing any sort of apology to Ruto.
AFP
09-04-2025
- Politics
- AFP
Footage altered to falsely claim Kenya's ex-deputy leader apologised to president in 2025
Kenyan President William Ruto went on a five-day tour of the Mount Kenya region earlier this month. Political tensions surrounded the tour due to last year's impeachment of former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua, who hails from the region. A day into the visit, a post shared on X claimed to show Gachagua apologising to Ruto. But the video is altered; the footage combines an AI-generated voice impersonating a Kenyan journalist and an old video of Gachagua asking Ruto for forgiveness before his impeachment in 2024. 'Former Deputy Gachagua (Riggy G) has apologised to President William Ruto days into Ruto's historic visit back to Mt Kenya yesterday he was at Nanyuki and nyeri to launch development projects, will these apology calm waters (sic)?' reads an X post published on April 2, 2025. Image Screenshot of the altered post, taken on April 4, 2025 In what looks like a news bulletin by Kenyan broadcaster Citizen TV, the chyron reads 'Gachagua to Ruto: Please forgive me' and 'Former deputy president seeks forgiveness from Pres. Ruto'. Jeff Koinange, a news anchor at the media outlet, appears briefly at the beginning of the clip. Although the accompanying audio sounds like his voice, it is out of sync with his lip movements. 'Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua has apologised to President William Ruto,' Koinange appears to say. 'Days into Ruto's historic visit back to central Kenya, Gachagua bows his head. A public apology watched by the whole nation. Will this apology calm the waters or is it just the eye of the storm? Folks, you can't make this stuff up. This is the story of the hour.' Twenty-two seconds into the video, the clip cuts to Gachagua giving an address. 'To my brother President William Ruto, if in our zeal and commitment to work I have wronged you, please find it in your heart to forgive me. If my spouse in her duties for the boy child and her programme has wronged you in any way, find it in your heart to forgive her,' Gachagua says. 'To our members of parliament, if in the course of duty, through our utterances and actions, we have in one way or another upset you or wronged you, find it in your heart to forgive me,' he adds. Gachagua-Ruto feud Gachagua was impeached and subsequently removed from his role as deputy president on October 17, 2024, after falling out with Ruto (archived here and here). He is now looking to unseat Ruto in the 2027 general election (archived here). Speaking in an interview a day before he began a tour in the Mount Kenya region, where Gachagua comes from, Ruto blamed his ex-deputy for his own downfall. He accused Gachagua of creating conflicts and demanding billions to resolve political tensions in the region (archived here and here). Gachagua, who has been fighting for political supremacy in the region since his ouster, responded by dismissing the claims as lies (archived here and here). The video does not show Gachagua issuing an apology to Ruto amid the tour in his political backyard. Doctored video AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches on screengrabs from the clip shared on X and the results established that it was created using old, unrelated videos and audio generated with Artificial Intelligence (AI) software. The footage of Koinange seen at the beginning of the clip was originally published by Citizen TV on March 2, 2025 (archived here). The bulletin covered Gachagua's sustained attacks on Ruto. There was no mention of an apology. Comparisons show that the images in the background showing Gachagua, opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka and State House were edited out in the X video. The font used for the chyron is also different in both videos. Image Screenshots comparing the altered post (left) and the original footage published by Citizen TV While the clip of Gachagua's apology is authentic, it is not recent. The footage is from an address he gave on October 6, 2024, at his official Karen residence, days before he was impeached by the Senate (archived here). Gachagua can be seen wearing the same attire in both videos, and the Kenyan and Israeli flags are visible in the background. Image Screenshots comparing the altered post (left) and the original footage published by Citizen TV In the section featuring Koinange, the unnatural pauses in the audio, as well as the fact that it doesn't sync with the journalist's lip movements, are tell-tale signs that it is AI-generated. AFP Fact Check ran the audio from this section through InVID-WeVerify's audio detection tool and the results suggested strong evidence of voice cloning. The rest of the audio from Gachagua's address is authentic. Image Screenshot of InVID-WeVerify's voice cloning detector results, taken on April 4, 2025 We did not find any credible evidence of Gachagua recently issuing any sort of apology to Ruto.
