Are Claims That Kisumu County Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o Is Dead Accurate?

By Simon Muli

An article claims that the Kisumu County governor, Anyang’ Nyong’o, has succumbed to prostate cancer.

The article, dated 14 July 2021, alleges that Governor Nyong’o was confirmed dead the same morning at his home in Kisumu.

Details about the governor’s medical history — including his prostate cancer diagnosis — are provided, with this information attributed to Nyong’o’s family spokesperson identified as James Onyango.

The article also runs a screenshot of a Citizen TV broadcast whose ticker indicates Nyong’o was hospitalised.

Verification

While Professor Nyong’o was indeed diagnosed with prostate cancer in July 2010, PesaCheck has found that the claim that the governor succumbed to the illness has no basis in fact.

The screenshot used in the claim is taken from a January 2019 broadcast, when the Kisumu Governor was readmitted to hospital.

Also, given his prominence as a sitting county governor, Nyong’o’s death would have received widespread media coverage. However, an internet search returns no credible results on the same.

A day after the claim was shared, Nyong’o was featured in a news article carried by The Star which captured his participation in the launch of a new road maintenance technology dubbed claycrete.

The article states that the event took place on 14 July 2021, the day he was supposedly pronounced dead. The governor also posted news of the launch on his Facebook page that same day.

Later on that day, he handed out bursaries and scholarships worth Ksh 250 million to students in the 2020–21 financial year, an event that was both documented on his Facebook page and published in The Star.

Further, he has continued to document his activities on social media, several days after the claim about his death was made.

For example, on 16 July 2021, he attended the Council of Governors Executive Committee consultative meeting with the Board of Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA).

PesaCheck has debunked similar claims about Governor Nyong’o in May 2021 and in January 2019.

Verdict