Ignore fake 'Citizen Digital' graphic quoting Kenyan governor Wamatangi as dismissing war on illicit brew

IN SHORT: As the crackdown on illicit brew intensifies in Kenya, a graphic circulating on social media quotes Kiambu county governor Kimani Wamatangi as dismissing the efforts. However, the graphic is fake.

A graphic attributing a controversial quote to Kiambu county governor Kimani Wamatangi is circulating on social media in Kenya.

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In the graphic, the governor appears to dismiss the ongoing nationwide crackdown on illicit alcohol, saying bars contribute to the county's economy.

"Stop asking me those silly questions on illicit brews, if you want answers go ask KEBS or The national government. I will continue issuing our bars their licence because we must shape our county economy by taxing Them," the graphic quotes him as saying.

Kiambu is one of Kenya's 47 counties, located north of the capital, Nairobi.

The graphic features the logo and branding of Citizen Digital, the online news platform of Royal Media Services, one of Kenya's leading media companies.

Kenya Bureau of Standards, or KEBS, is a government agency responsible for setting, maintaining and regulating product standards, quality control and measurement accuracy.

Over the years, the government has led efforts to fight the illicit brew business that has claimed lives.

The graphic has been posted widely. But is it authentic? We checked.

Fake graphic

There are a number of signs that the graphic is fake.

Its text contains unusual capitalisation and punctuation that would be unexpected in a professionally produced Citizen Digital graphic.

We compared it with a genuine one from Citizen Digital and found significant differences. One striking difference is that the circulating graphic has its quote in white on a blue text box, while the genuine one features white text on a fading black background.

Citizen Digital usually posts digital versions of its graphics on its verified social media accounts, including Facebook and X. We searched these accounts but did not find the graphic in question.

All signs point to a fake quote that should be disregarded.