Royal Media Services (RMS) Chairperson SK Macharia has made explosive claims regarding past Kenyan elections, alleging that former Presidents Mwai Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta, as well as the incumbent President William Ruto, manipulated election outcomes to secure their victories.
Speaking during the burial of Col (Rtd) James Gitahi in Machakos on Saturday, the media mogul asserted that opposition leader Raila Odinga had won the highly contested 2007 elections, only to have the results altered in favor of then-President Mwai Kibaki.
2007 Election Rigging Allegations
Macharia, an ardent supporter of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader, claimed that he was forcibly taken to his office and compelled to change the election results to reflect Kibaki as the winner.
“We had data. Complete data showed it was Raila who won,” Macharia alleged. “Our data was showing Raila had won with 1.8 million votes.”
According to him, returning officers from the Mt. Kenya region were detained, and their returning forms were seized and altered to ensure Kibaki’s victory.
“I was picked from my house at night. And all the returning officers from the Mt. Kenya region were held somewhere and their returning forms taken,” he recounted. “I was taken to my office. I found some people whose names I will not mention. And we changed all those figures, and Kibaki won the election.”
On December 30, 2007, the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK), chaired by Samuel Kivuitu, declared Kibaki the winner by approximately 232,000 votes. Kibaki was swiftly sworn in for a second term that evening, triggering widespread post-election violence that claimed over 1,000 lives and displaced hundreds of thousands.
Ruto’s 2022 Election Allegations
Macharia further alleged that the 2022 general election was also rigged in favor of President William Ruto. According to him, the current Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) register system is compromised, having been manipulated since the murder of IEBC ICT manager Chris Msando in 2017.
“President Ruto did not win the election in 2022. He added himself extra votes,” Macharia stated. “The current IEBC register system is fake; it was interrupted and fake data inserted the day Msando was killed. We need a new register.”
Macharia, now 84 years old, emphasized that he no longer fears speaking the truth about past electoral injustices.
His remarks are likely to spark renewed debate on Kenya’s electoral processes and the credibility of past elections. The statements also reignite discussions on electoral reforms and the need for greater transparency in vote tallying and results transmission.
As of now, neither the government nor the IEBC has responded to Macharia’s claims.
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