Kenya: No, Governor of Kenya's Kiambu County Didn't Welcome Plans to Quarantine US Ebola Patients

25 June 2026
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Grace Gichuhi

No, governor of Kenya's Kiambu county didn't welcome plans to quarantine US Ebola patients

IN SHORT: A graphic circulating online that appears to be published by Citizen Digital claims that Kimani Wamatangi welcomed plans to quarantine US Ebola patients in Kenya. However, both the governor and the media house have dismissed the graphic as fake.

A graphic posted on Facebook quotes Kiambu governor Kimani Wamatangi as welcoming a controversial move by the Kenyan government to quarantine Ebola patients from the United States in Kiambu county, about 20 kilometres from Nairobi.

The graphic features a photo of Wamatangi and the branding of Citizen Digital, the online news platform of Royal Media Services, one of Kenya's largest media companies.

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It attributes the following statement to Wamatangi: "Kiambu county welcomes the move by the government to quarantine USA Ebola patients. We have space and capacity in our health facilities. It will also act as an exposure to our health workers in case of a possible national outbreak we shall be well prepared. Reaserch and tests for vaccine and cure will put us in the global map as a county."

The graphic is dated 29 May 2026 and presented as a Citizen Digital news alert.

Ebola is a severe and often fatal viral disease. This graphic surfaced amid public debate over reports that Kenya had agreed to establish a quarantine facility in Laikipia county for US citizens exposed to Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The proposal sparked concern among Kenyans about the public health risks and whether Kenya was prepared to care for such patients.

The controversy led to a court challenge and the temporary halting of plans for the facility pending the outcome of the case. Despite the orders, there have been media reports that construction is underway.

The graphic has been widely shared by users criticising Wamatangi and questioning whether Kiambu county should host US Ebola patients. The graphic has also been posted here, here and here.

But did the governor make these remarks? We checked.

Fake graphic

A search of Citizen Digital's official Facebook and X accounts found no trace of the graphic.

There are also a number of signs suggesting it was fabricated. For instance, the word "research" is misspelt, an error unlikely to appear in an authentic news graphic.

We also compared the graphic with genuine Citizen Digital breaking news alert graphics. A different design is used for quotes attributed to individuals. Authentic news alert graphics also do not normally include lengthy attributed statements.

The viral graphic departs from these conventions.

Wamatangi also addressed the claim on his official Facebook account, sharing the image and labelling it "FAKE".

"Fake! Treat it with the contempt that it deserves," he wrote.

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. X @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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