A video on Facebook supposedly showing US President Donald Trump reprimanding Kenyan President William Ruto has been identified as altered. The clip features Trump speaking from a podium, addressing Ruto for a few seconds. In the video, Trump supposedly says: “But if you’re not happy in the US, if you are complaining every time, very simply, you can leave. You can leave right now. Come back if you want, don’t come back, it’s okay too. But if you’re not happy you can leave.”
However, a reverse search of a screengrab from the clip led PesaCheck to similar footage showing Trump speaking to Ruto. The clips, which date back to December 2025, depict Trump acknowledging Ruto and showing appreciation for Kenyan athletes, before inviting Ruto to attend the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, USA. This interaction was reported by various sources at the time.
PesaCheck established that the footage under scrutiny was altered after reviewing Trump's speech. The fact-checking organisation found that the original clip showed Trump inviting Ruto to the 2028 Olympics, not reprimanding him. At the time, Ruto was in Washington, D.C to witness the signing of a peace deal between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.
A further keyword search to determine the origin of the audio led PesaCheck to reports quoting Trump asking four Democratic congresswomen to leave the US if they were unhappy. This further established that the clip under scrutiny was doctored. The discovery was made as part of PesaCheck's ongoing series of fact-checks examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.
PesaCheck is East Africa’s first public finance fact-checking initiative, co-founded by Catherine Gicheru and Justin Arenstein. The organisation is incubated by the continent's largest civic technology and data journalism accelerator: Code for Africa. PesaCheck seeks to help the public separate fact from fiction in public pronouncements about the numbers that shape our world.
The fact-check was written by PesaCheck fact-checker Harriet Ogayo and edited by PesaCheck senior copy editor Mary Mutisya and chief copy editor Stephen Ndegwa. The article was approved for publication by PesaCheck managing editor Doreen Wainainah. PesaCheck partners with Facebook and similar social media platforms to sort fact from fiction.
The altered video is part of a larger effort by PesaCheck to test the accuracy of media reportage and public pronouncements. The organisation's work includes examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.
Key points
- The video of Trump reprimanding President Ruto was altered.
- The original clip showed Trump inviting Ruto to the 2028 Olympics.
- PesaCheck is East Africa’s first public finance fact-checking initiative.
