Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Dr. Korir Sing’Oei has landed in hot water after posting an AI-generated deepfake video on his official X account, touting Kenya’s peace diplomacy in Sudan.
The clip, crafted to mimic a CNN broadcast featuring journalist Fareed Zakaria, was captioned: “For the fake analysts who doubt the good faith of Kenya’s peace diplomacy, here is a cogent assessment by CNN’s Foreign Policy expert, Fareed Zakaria.” But the stunt backfired spectacularly.
Kenyans on X pounced, exposing the video as a sham. “It’s disturbing and embarrassing to see the Principal Secretary sharing a deepfake,” fumed Mohamed Onyango, slamming Sing’Oei’s credibility and hinting at tribal favoritism in his appointment.
Antony Alexandria Irungu quipped, “Calling analysts ‘fake’ while using a deepfake is a new low,” tagging CNN and Zakaria for good measure. Others, like Arap Muk, warned of international fallout: “Did you not consider the embarrassment once Larry Madowo picks this up?”
A quick forensic check confirmed the ruse—shoddy visuals, mismatched lip-sync, and amateur graphics betrayed the fake, absent from CNN or Zakaria’s platforms.
After racking up over 60,000 views and a torrent of ridicule, Sing’Oei quietly deleted it, offering no apology. Veteran journalist John Allan Namu couldn’t resist: “These jokes write themselves.”
The gaffe piles onto Kenya’s recent diplomatic woes—from the M23 mess in Congo to Raila Odinga’s AUC loss and the controversial Rapid Support Forces meeting at KICC.
Critics say this latest blunder has torched Kenya’s global standing, leaving its foreign policy in tatters. As the dust settles, one question lingers: how much more damage can Nairobi’s reputation take?
