Kenya\u2019s former deputy leader Rigathi Gachagua was impeached in October 2024 after a bitter fallout with President William Ruto. A TikTok post shared following Gachagua\u2019s ouster claimed the two leaders had reunited and pledged to work together. This is false: AFP Fact Check found the images in the post were old while the audio dates back to Ruto\u2019s speech at the 2022 national prayer breakfast, during which he asked for forgiveness from Kenyans and his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta \u2013 not Gachagua.<\/span><\/h3>\n\u201cLatest news..!!!! Ruto meets Gachagua, as he asks for forgiveness and promises to work together\u201d and \u201cRuto reunites with Gachagua,\u201d reads text overlaid on a <\/span>TikTok post<\/span><\/a>\u00a0published on 25 October 2024.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\nScreenshot of the false post, taken on December 10, 2024<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cTo the great people of the Republic of Kenya, I know we have tried our best. We may not have done as much as you\u2019d have expected of us,\u201d Ruto is heard saying in the video clip.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cWe have not been as united as we should have been. We have failed in some areas; we ask — and specifically myself — I ask for your forgiveness. I know also in this journey many people have hurt me.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nFeatured in the clip are two photographs of Ruto and Gachagua being cordial.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nStrained political alliances<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\nOn October 17, 2024, the Kenyan Senate voted to remove<\/span><\/a> Gachagua, making him the first deputy president to be ousted in this manner since impeachment was introduced<\/span><\/a> in Kenya\u2019s 2010 constitution (archived here<\/span><\/a> and here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nKenya’s president and his deputy fell out two years after taking office, with the camps\u00a0trading barbs<\/span><\/a> over accusations of betrayal (archived here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nAs deputy president in the previous government, Ruto himself had a falling-out<\/span><\/a> with then-president Kenyatta (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>). Citing humiliation from Kenyatta\u2019s supporters, he\u00a0vowed<\/span><\/a> at the time not to allow his deputy to suffer the same fate if he were elected president in the 2022 polls (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nRuto and Gachagua met for the first time since the impeachment at an\u00a0event<\/span><\/a> commemorating the consecration and installation of Bishop Kimani Ndung\u2019u in Embu County on November 16.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nGachagua sat among the congregation but the pair did not speak. It was also the first time since Ruto\u2019s swearing-in ceremony in September 2022 that he and Kenyatta shared a stage (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nThe TikTok post of the purported reunion between the estranged Kenyan leaders is, however, false.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nUnrelated images and audio<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\nAFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and found news reports from October 2024 with the same images featured in the TikTok post.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\u201cKenya\u2019s President-elect William Ruto, left, and Rigathi Gachagua during the 2022 election season,\u201d reads the caption below the photo of the two men shaking hands, which was featured in an October 18 Al Jazeera article<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0(archived here<\/span><\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\nThe image of the duo holding their watches next to former second lady Dorcas Rigathi appeared in a story<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0published on October 11, 2024 by The Kenya Times (archived here<\/span><\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cPresident William Ruto and DP Rigathi Gachagua during Mashujaa Day Celebrations October 20, 2023,\u201d the caption reads.<\/span><\/p>\n\n![\"<span>Screenshots](\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/mzxfAeiRpCrodpaJ.X7jfQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTM4NA--\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/afp_factcheck_us_713\/2f5bf33eb4d40da3b5955fd0612a44fc\"\/)
Screenshot of the false post, taken on December 10, 2024<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n \u201cTo the great people of the Republic of Kenya, I know we have tried our best. We may not have done as much as you\u2019d have expected of us,\u201d Ruto is heard saying in the video clip.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe have not been as united as we should have been. We have failed in some areas; we ask — and specifically myself — I ask for your forgiveness. I know also in this journey many people have hurt me.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Featured in the clip are two photographs of Ruto and Gachagua being cordial.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n On October 17, 2024, the Kenyan Senate voted to remove<\/span><\/a> Gachagua, making him the first deputy president to be ousted in this manner since impeachment was introduced<\/span><\/a> in Kenya\u2019s 2010 constitution (archived here<\/span><\/a> and here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Kenya’s president and his deputy fell out two years after taking office, with the camps\u00a0trading barbs<\/span><\/a> over accusations of betrayal (archived here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As deputy president in the previous government, Ruto himself had a falling-out<\/span><\/a> with then-president Kenyatta (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>). Citing humiliation from Kenyatta\u2019s supporters, he\u00a0vowed<\/span><\/a> at the time not to allow his deputy to suffer the same fate if he were elected president in the 2022 polls (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Ruto and Gachagua met for the first time since the impeachment at an\u00a0event<\/span><\/a> commemorating the consecration and installation of Bishop Kimani Ndung\u2019u in Embu County on November 16.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Gachagua sat among the congregation but the pair did not speak. It was also the first time since Ruto\u2019s swearing-in ceremony in September 2022 that he and Kenyatta shared a stage (archived\u00a0here<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The TikTok post of the purported reunion between the estranged Kenyan leaders is, however, false.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and found news reports from October 2024 with the same images featured in the TikTok post.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cKenya\u2019s President-elect William Ruto, left, and Rigathi Gachagua during the 2022 election season,\u201d reads the caption below the photo of the two men shaking hands, which was featured in an October 18 Al Jazeera article<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0(archived here<\/span><\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n The image of the duo holding their watches next to former second lady Dorcas Rigathi appeared in a story<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0published on October 11, 2024 by The Kenya Times (archived here<\/span><\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cPresident William Ruto and DP Rigathi Gachagua during Mashujaa Day Celebrations October 20, 2023,\u201d the caption reads.<\/span><\/p>\nStrained political alliances<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
Unrelated images and audio<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n