ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru has reiterated that the government will not shut down the internet during the election period.
Mucheru, on Saturday, July 30, responded to the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) threats to shut down Facebook.
The CS indicated that NCIC's seven-day ultimatum to the social media giants was unnecessary as a clamp down on Facebook would be a Constitutional violation.
He noted that traditional media and social media platforms will not be affected in any way by the August polls despite concerns raised by the NCIC.
"Media, including social media, will continue to enjoy press freedom in Kenya. Not clear what legal framework NCIC plans to use to suspend Facebook. government is on record. We are not shutting down the Internet," CS Mucheru called out the NCIC.
The peace ambassadors issued a strongly worded statement after advocacy group Global Witness stated in a report that Facebook had accepted and carried more than a dozen political advertisements that breached Kenya's rules.
NCIC accused Facebook of failing to cooperate with commission in its efforts to promote peace in the country during the elections period.
“We have been trying to push peace messages on Facebook but Facebook has been suppressing them. We have been unable to fight hate speech because Facebook has refused to allow us to publish these messages," NCIC commissioner Danvas Makori lamented.
The Global Witness' report, NCIC stated, affirmed its own internal findings on the tension that the platform was building over the August polls.
Makori asked Facebook to solve cases of hate-mongering on the platform after the report detailed that Facebook was used by politicians to run advertisements that contravene regulations on ethnic profiling.
“If Facebook does not comply with the requirements that we set for them within seven days, we will recommend that Facebook services be suspended,” Makori stated during a presser.
Makori stated that NCIC’s efforts to promote peace and integration have been suppressed hence hindering the success of the initiative.
“We have been trying to push peace messages on Facebook but Facebook has been suppressing them. We have been unable to fight hate speech because Facebook has refused to allow us to publish these messages.”
The Commission had earlier demanded that Facebook pulls down any content capable of fuelling hate between Kenyans during the electioneering period. Facebook complied and pulled the hateful content on July 20.
