State House Director of Communications Gerald Bitok has responded firmly to circulating claims suggesting President William Ruto could be the “man behind the scenes” after Tanzanian businessman Rostam Aziz acquired a controlling stake in Nation Media Group (NMG).
The speculation, spread widely on social media and amplified by some commentators, alleges that President Ruto used Mr Aziz as a proxy to gain indirect ownership of Kenya’s largest media conglomerate.
Critics have pointed to the timing of the acquisition and Mr Ruto’s strained relationship with independent media houses as fuel for the theory.
In a statement shared on X on Wednesday, Bitok rejected the premise of the claims and challenged the selective outrage driving them.
He noted that Mr Aziz has publicly “set the record straight on his NMG takeover, and also regarding his political associations in the country (past & present) pointing to former Presidents and other influential leaders.”
“Nothing to add,” Bitok wrote, underscoring that the Tanzanian investor has addressed his own involvement and political ties without implicating the Kenyan President.
Bitok then pivoted to a broader critique of the logic behind the speculation. He asked rhetorically why questions around media ownership are suddenly framed as uniquely problematic if linked to President Ruto, when historical precedents involving previous heads of state have gone largely unchallenged.
“There’s a President who had a Media Group on Mombasa Road. A pioneer media house with massive network establishments in print and broadcast media with longstanding government support as the icing on its blue cake,” Bitok wrote, referring to historical ties between political leadership and media institutions.
He continued: “Another President had a Media Group down Kijabe Street on the edges of Nairobi CBD (comprising TV, radios and print). Before and during the 2022 elections, an owner of Kenya’s biggest media group by listenership and views was dancing in a Presidential campaign with broadcasted bias both in perception and act.”
Bitok’s rebuke confronts what he described as “selective memory” and “hypocrisy” in public discourse, arguing that robust critique of media–politics entanglement must be consistent rather than fixated on a sitting president.
“So, now that you’re suddenly woke,” he added, “my question is: what sacrilegious first sin will President William Ruto be committing if he ever decides to own a media house?”