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CS Mucheru to NCIC: We Are Not Shutting Down Facebook

Collins Ogutu | 1 year ago
CS Mucheru to NCIC: We Are Not Shutting Down
CS Mucheru to NCIC: We Are Not Shutting Down

Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru has rejected plans by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC)  to shut down Meta'a Facebook company.

NCIC through its Commissioner Dr Danvas Makori announced a ban on. Facebook on Frida  over its failure to improve content moderation on hate speech in the run-up to the August 9 elections.

Mucheru in an address Saturday morning, stated that  "the government has no intention whatsoever of shutting down the internet."

The Samuel Kobia led commission claimed Facebook’s incapability to regulate it's platform causing violation of the country's laws amid the heightened political activities ahead of next month's polls.

"The freedom of expression does not extend to propaganda, incitement to violence, hate speech, or advocacy of hatred,” he said. “Facebook violates our laws because they have allowed themselves to be a medium of hate speech, incitement, misinformation, and disinformation.” said Makori.

The commission also said that it has so far sent their recommendations to the tech giant.

If the move by the NCIC could be okayed then Kenya was  about to join other few nations that have called on Meta to halt political ads, and to use “break glass” measures the stricter emergency moderation methods it used to stem misinformation and civil unrest during the 2020 U.S. elections.

In Kenya, Facebook has a penetration of 82 percent making it the second most widely used social network after WhatsApp.

It is said in the six months to April 30, the company reported taking down over 37,000 pieces of content violating hate speech policies, and another 42,000 for promoting violence and incitement on Facebook and Instagram.

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