Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang’i has said the government has no intentions of shutting down social media ahead or during the 2022 general election.
In a video shared on his Twitter page on Friday, Dr. Matiang’i noted that Kenya is a strong democracy that believes in respecting the rights of her citizens.
“Our challenge number one is the misuse and abuse of social media. That’s what we are going to deal with. You know some governments because they are not a strong and as a democratic as ours, resort to shutting down the internet or disabling Facebook. Kenya is not going to do that.
“We are a democracy that has matured, we are facing an election which is going to demonstrate even out greater democratic maturity. We are going to be fine, we are not going to resort to those other tactics,” he said.
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Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang'i. [Photo: Courtesy]
He, however, noted that the relevant agencies will be on high alert and will deal firmly with anyone found guilty of using social media to incite or attack others.
“But you know, some of us have gone to animal levels, you wake up in the morning publish things which hurt others and they lies and you don’t care. I think we may have to find a way of dealing with those animals,” he said.
Over the years, social media has played a critical role in campaigns. However, some people tend to use it to spread misinformation or incite others to violence.
In East Africa, Uganda, and Tanzania while conducting their last general elections shut down social media in what was condemned globally. In Nigeria, the government recently shut down Twitter, eliciting massive protests across the country.
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