The article, published on Maishatv.com on July 29, alleges that Governor Waiguru was confirmed d**d on the morning of 29th July, along Thika Road. The article was picked up by some facebook users who shared it in various forums. Also another website, udakumoto.co.ke, ran the same article.
Maishatv.com claims the a******t occurred at around 7:30 pm when her car rammed into a cargo lorry on her way back to Kirinyaga from Nairobi where she had held a meeting with high-ranking government officials.
The article claims the a******t also left her bodyguard in c****************n while the driver d**d on the spot. Quoting ‘a closer source’ it claims the vehicle carrying the governor was speeding.
“The driver d**d on the spot while Governor Ann Waruguru was rescued by the e*******y team and rushed to Nairobi hospital where she d**d on the way,” Maishatv.com reported.
A fact-check by Business Today finds that the article is, in fact, FAKE. First, Waiguru is still alive and serving as the governor of Kirinyaga County. She has been addressing various county issues even on national TV. Secondly, there’s no record of the a******t involving Ms Waiguru on 29th July, nor any news report, offline or online, about the same apart from the two websites that reported it.
An analysis of Maishatv.com and udakumoto.co.ke websites reveals a consistent trend in reporting fake news and sensationalizing of events. They have reported a number of high-profile personalities either d**d or involved in a*******s.
VERDICT: The report by maishatv.com that Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru d**d in an a******t is FAKE since she has continued to be seen discharging her duties and no a******t involving her has been recorded or reported by any credible media.
[This story was produced by Business Today in partnership with Code for Africa’s iLAB data journalism programme, with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie ]
