Social media reports that indicate former Taita Taveta Governor Granton Samboja has been appointed the county’s County Executive Committee (CEC) member by the new governor are fake.
Abdirizak Mohamud is among those who have claimed that the ex-county boss has landed a job as county CEC for Water, Environment, sanitation, climate change and natural resources.
“Taita Taveta Governor appointed his predecessor Gov Granton Samboja CEC of water, Environment, Sanitation, Climate change and natural resources,” he tweeted.
Many of the misleading reports have quoted a genuine gazette notice bearing the name “Granton Samboja Mwandawiro” as the nominee for the docket.
The Fact-Checker has debunked the claims and can now report that the CEC nominated for the appointment is not the former governor.
First, though the former governor was known as Granton Samboja, his third name is not Mwandawiro but Graham.
The Fact-Checker also reached out to Taita Taveta County Assembly for clarification on the same.
In an interview with the Fact-Checker, Taita Taveta Deputy Speaker Anslem Mwandime Chao, who is also MCA for Mwanda Mghange, confirmed that the appointee is not the former governor.
He clarified that the two are cousins.
“The appointee is not the former governor. He is, however, a cousin to the former Governor,” he told the Fact-Checker in a text message.
This fact check was produced by The Star Newspaper with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck, African Fact-Checking Alliance Network, and the United Nations Development Program.