Kenya's Daily Nation Newspaper Didn't Run Front Page Story That Former Deputy President Was 'Architect of His Own Downfall'

31 March 2025
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Dancan Bwire

Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper didn't run front page story that former deputy president was 'architect of his own downfall'

IN SHORT: A front page which appears to be from Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper accuses former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua of causing his impeachment in 2024. But the front page is fake and the legitimate headline from that date discussed Kenya's education sector challenges.

Former Kenyan deputy president Rigathi Gachagua was the architect of his own downfall. That's according to the headline of what looks like the 25 March 2025 edition of the Daily Nation, a Kenyan newspaper with national reach.

"Gachagua: The Architect of His Own Downfall," it reads.

A summary below the headline criticises Gachagua further, saying his leadership style was more "of a solo act than a team sport" and his behaviour made him a "walking impeachment notice" who "burned bridges faster than he could build them".

The front page features images of Gachagua and Kenyan lawmaker Gathoni Wamuchomba, a close ally of Gachagua. Wamuchomba represents Githunguri constituency in the national assembly, one of the constituencies in Kiambu, a county that borders the Kenyan capital Nairobi to the north.

The front page appears to be in relation to Wamuchomba's comments on 24 March during a television interview where she urged Gachagua to present himself as a national leader and not only for the Mount Kenya region.

The Mount Kenya region refers to areas around central Kenya, including the counties of Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Embu, Meru, Tharaka Nithi and Kiambu, traditionally inhabited by the Kikuyu, Embu and Meru communities.

Gachagua is Kikuyu and has often presented himself as the leader and defender of the region. He was Kenya's deputy president until his impeachment in October 2024 after falling out with president William Ruto.

His preoccupation with the region's politics has seen him accused of dividing Kenyans along ethnic lines and being labelled "tribalist". Tribalism is frowned upon in Kenya as it has led to deadly ethnic clashes, especially during elections.

The front page has been posted here and here. (Note: See more instances listed at the end of this report.)

But is it legit? We checked.

Altered front page

Nation Africa, the newspaper's online platform, usually posts digital versions of its front pages on its verified social media accounts, including Facebook and X. We compared a genuine front page to the one in circulation and found clear differences.

While a genuine front page shows the newspaper's name, Daily Nation, the suspicious front page says "NATION DAILY". This is a clue that it is impersonating the genuine newspaper.

We compared the suspicious front page with a genuine one and noted that the font used for the headline and summary also doesn't look like the genuine newspaper. This is the second hint that it is fake.

We looked for the original front page for 25 March on the newspaper's social media pages and found it.

It had the headline: "Uhuru's Sh26bn CBC blunder". The summary below the headline is also different.

The genuine front page features an image of former president Uhuru Kenyatta and other public figures.

The front page in circulation is fake and should be ignored.

The fake front page was also posted here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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