By Elijah Koome
In an X post published on July 22, 2026, an account with the username Lion of the Mountain, which regularly posts pro-government and anti-opposition content, made the claim that Standard newspaper had, on July 21, 2026, published a frontpage mocking opposition politician Rigathi Gachagua, calling him a clown who was over excited after the candidate he had been backing in the Ol Kalou by-elections won the parliamentary seat. The image attached to the post showed an alleged Standard front page with a distorted image of Gachagua, made to resemble a monkey. The headline read “A Clown’s Over Excitement.”
In the caption, the user posted “The Standard imefinya tribal Bigot Rigathi Gachagua mbaya sana,” translated to “The Standard has severely pressed tribal bigot Rigathi Gachagua.” At the time of review, the post had garnered 44 retweets and 306 likes.
Background
The Ol Kalou by-election was held on July 16, 2026, following David Kiaraho’s demise in March 2026. The candidates included Samuel Kamau Ngotho of Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) and Samuel Muchina of United Democratic Alliance (UDA). As the party leader of DCP, Rigathi Gachagua supported Ngotho, who won the election by a landslide.
Days before the election, there was intense campaigning in the area. Voters were reportedly wooed using various gifts, including boats, gas cylinders, mattresses, cash, and other largesse. On the election day, there were reports of goons attempting to disrupt the election process through violence and intimidation. At least one person was reportedly killed during the skirmishes.
Verification
According to The Standard’s official X handle, the front page on July 21, 2026 was headlined “Panic in the valley,” with the image of a man in a suit facing away. Any other images of The Standard front page on July 21, 2026 are therefore not genuine.
Verdict
The claim that on July 21, 2026, the Standard published a front page mocking opposition politician Rigathi Gachagua, calling him a clown, is FALSE.
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