By Simon Muli
An image shared on X (formerly Twitter) claiming to show Kenya’s former President Uhuru Kenyatta meeting King Charles III ahead of the Monarch’s visit to Kenya is FALSE.
The text accompanying the image claims that the former President met the Monarch at Buckingham Palace.
“During his family vacation in the UK, Uhuru Kenyatta had the opportunity to visit Buckingham Palace, where he met with King’s at the prestigious residence,” reads the text.
King Charles III and Queen Consort Camila’s state visit to Kenya began on 31 October 2023. The visit is His Majesty’s first to a Commonwealth nation as King.
Another post on X claims that the former President discussed the itinerary of King Charles’ visit to Kenya.
Kenyan news organisations reported in July 2023 that the former President had travelled to the UK for a holiday with his family, as seen here.
However, the image we are fact-checking was not taken from the trip as claimed.
A reverse image search reveals that the image was taken long before Charles ascended the throne and when Kenyatta was still President.
One of the search results is a Facebook post from State House Kenya on 28 July 2021 featuring the image. According to the post, the former President was on an official visit to the United Kingdom as President, not on a family vacation as suggested.
At that time, Charles was still the Prince of Wales, and Queen Elizabeth II was the reigning monarch. The meeting occurred at Sandringham House, the Queen’s private residence, not Buckingham Palace as stated. Kenyan news outlets, including Kenyans.co.ke, reported on the meeting.
The former President retired from office on 13 September 2022, just days after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. King Charles III was coronated on 6 May 2023.
PesaCheck has examined the image claiming to show Kenya’s Former President Uhuru Kenyatta meeting King Charles III ahead of the Monarch’s visit to Kenya and found it to be FALSE.
This fact check was published by Piga Firimbi with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck and African Fact-Checking Alliance.
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