Posts falsely claim that Kenya’s deputy leader is seen lecturing a presidential aide in a clip

“Dp Kindiki lectures Faruk Kibet,” reads a TikTok post published on January 5, 2025.

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Screenshot of the false post, taken on January 14, 2024

Featured in the clip is a photo of Farouk Kibet, a long-serving personal assistant to Ruto (archived here).

“I have seen people here who are trying to teach us our work. We know our jobs. We are very clear, we know what the job is. The leaders you are seeing here, some are very young, but they are very clear on what their people require. And they have a roadmap to resolving the problems of their people,” Kindiki says in the clip, partly in Swahili.

“Your headache as a leader should be what it is that I can do, now that I have this opportunity, for the people. Not just loitering aimlessly. Some see how we speak and think we are cowards.”

The claim was repeated by other TikTok accounts, including here. 

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Screenshot of the false post, taken on January 14, 2025

“Let us respect each other old man. Kindiki slams Farouk Kibet badly after being slapped,” reads a text overlay on the footage.

A logo belonging to digital news outlet Kenyans.co.ke is visible in the top-right corner of the clip (archived here).

Missing in action

Kindiki was sworn in as Kenya’s deputy president on November 1, 2024 (archived here). This followed Gachagua’s impeachment the previous month, which marked the culmination of a long-drawn fall out between him and Ruto after two years in office (archived here and here).

The new deputy president was noticeably absent from several events attended by Ruto since December 20. This drew parallels to the early signs of discord between Gachagua and Ruto (archived here).

For instance, Kindiki was missing when the Ruto hosted Ghana’s President-elect John Dramani Mahama and the outgoing African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki at his Kilgoris home on December 24, 2024 (archived here). 

He also failed to show at a cultural festival hosted by opposition leader Raila Odinga and attended by Ruto and Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni on January 2, 2024 (archived here).

Kindiki resurfaced on January 4, 2024, at a wedding ceremony in Kiambu county, during which he dispelled rumors of a fall-out within the presidency. He urged Kenyans to ignore the rumors, saying that he had been on holiday (archived here).

“My holiday is coming to an end and therefore I need to enjoy whatever is left,” he said. “Ignore everything else. Don't fall into the trap of triviality... I am glad that his excellency the president allowed me a few days off, I feel so energised.”

Gachagua warning

Using keywords from the clips, AFP Fact Check found that the footage in the misleading posts was taken from a speech Kindik gave at a church in Embu county on January 5, 2024.

Kenyan broadcaster NTV reported that the deputy president warned Gachagua and his allies over what he called the incitement of Kenyans against the government (archived here).

In his address, Kindiki also accused Gachagua of creating rifts among Mount Kenya region residents instead of offering practical solutions to their problems.

This followed Gachagua’s visit to the county two days earlier, where he called out Embu leaders for their silence on the recent wave of abductions in the country (archived here and here).

Other local media outlets also reported on Kindiki’s address, including here and here (archived here and here).

Kenyans.co.ke published the video on their official Instagram account on January 5, 2024 (archived here).

 Contrary to the claim in the TikTok post, it does not mention Kibet