Kenya: Expert Debunks Kindiki Duty Transfer Claims As DP Dismisses 'Fake News'

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying a Capital FM report from Nairobi dated July 28, 2026, reported that Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has dismissed as “fake news” viral claims that President William Ruto had removed him from key responsibilities involving intergovernmental affairs. The online claims alleged that the role had been reassigned to Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, but the report said neither State House nor Mudavadi’s office had issued an official confirmation of such a change.

Governance and devolution expert John Burugu told Capital FM that the controversy appeared to rest on a misunderstanding of Kenya’s legal and administrative framework. He argued that any administrative adjustment would not amount to stripping the Deputy President of constitutional or statutory authority. Burugu said the issue also points to an administrative gap linked to the absence of a substantive Cabinet Secretary for Devolution.

The report highlighted one key legal point: Burugu said the Public Finance Management Act provides that the Deputy President chairs the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council, which helps coordinate fiscal relations between the national and county governments. He said that role could only be changed through an amendment by Parliament.

Capital FM also reported that Dennis Itumbi, identified as Presidential Special Projects Head, rejected the claims and said Kenya’s intergovernmental system is divided among several institutions, including IBEC, the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee and the Council of Governors. The dispute matters because it touches on the balance of administrative authority within the executive and the legal structures governing national-county relations.