Dagoretti South MP John Kiarie apologizes for ‘fake photos’ claim

Dagoretti South Mp John Kiarie has doubled down on claims he made that pictures from the RejectFinanceBill were fake.

The legislator was captured in a Parliamentary session claiming that the images from the Occupy Parliament protests on Tuesday June 20 were doctored.

He declared he was an expert who could identify they were altered, with some downloaded from old protests.

“The committee was already in the process of engaging Kenyans way before a fake protest was organised… Some of the photos we were seeing, I can tell you as a graphic editor, that they do not belong to this country,” KJ claimed.

“Photos were being taken off the internet and being edited and posed as Gen Z. I am a photo expert and I can point out to you photos that were edited to look like they were in the streets of Nairobi but they were not,” he claimed.

“Every digital image has a digital footprint. If a photo was taken in 2020 and was being used (yesterday) we can tell from the metadata of that photo.”

In his apology KJ noted that he was insensitive

“I truly apologize for the comments I made regarding the protests and the authenticity of certain images. In the heat fo the moment, during the debate on the finance bill my words were unnecessary, misguided and incentive”

He added a hand written note adding he deeply regretted his utterances.

“After refection and also understanding the anger and frustration that exists in our Nation Anger that stems from decades of many unresolved, but very pertinent national issues” he wrote on a paper.

“Having been a part of movements clamoring for social justice and good governance in the past, I acknowledge the importance of vigilance and also popular agitation for a better Kenya”

“I appreciate and celebrate the courage and creativity shown by the younger generation in advocating for change through innovative channels and platforms including social media, & other emerging technologies”

Two days ago, the Mp met fierce resistance when he attended a burial and sought to defend his remarks.

Chants from the crowd prevented him from addressing them any further as a woman approached him and took the microphone.