The US Embassy in Kenya has issued a public statement clarifying that a letter circulating on social media, which claimed that Sports Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi had been banned from entering the United States, is a fake.
The letter, dated December 1, 2024, purported to announce a travel restriction imposed by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on the two Kenyan leaders.
The letter alleged that Murkomen and Sudi were under investigation for accepting bribes to facilitate tenders to an international company.
It claimed that, effective from midnight on December 1, 2024, the two officials would be barred from entering the United States indefinitely, pending further investigation by the FBI.
The document also falsely stated that the suspension would affect the visa exemption policy, as well as the issuance of tourist and electronic visas.
However, upon review, the US Embassy swiftly flagged the letter as fraudulent, pointing to various inconsistencies such as typos, inconsistent fonts, and formatting errors that raised doubts about its authenticity.
In a statement, the embassy confirmed that the travel ban was not legitimate and emphasized that the information was fabricated.
The embassy urged the public to disregard the fake letter.
This is not the first time misinformation has spread through social media regarding government officials.
In September, a similar fake letter claimed that the American NGO Ford Foundation had issued an apology to the Kenyan government.
The letter, supposedly addressed to Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs Korir Sing’oei, alleged that Ford Foundation had apologized for its grantees’ involvement in the 2025 protests in Kenya.
However, PS Korir denied receiving such a letter, affirming that it was false.
The US Embassy’s swift response highlights the need for vigilance against false information circulating on social media.
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