Civil societies groups under the Operation Linda Ugatuzi umbrella on Monday, June 12, expressed their intentions of filing a petition in court to block the rollout of the new Unique Personal Identifier (UPI).
Led by activist and political analyst Fred Ogola, the team stated that the rollout of the project was a waste of public resources as it was a similar project to the Huduma Namba card, rolled out by President Uhuru Kenyatta's regime.
Additionally, they argued that thousands of Kenyans contracted for the rollout of the Huduma Namba would lose money and jobs.
Ogola argued that the government intended to contract Pakistan nationals to roll out the new identifiers instead of contracting Kenyan professionals.
At the same time, he reiterated that Kenyans were already grappling with the high cost of living and the billions that will be used for the rollout of the new digital ID will be detrimental to the Kenyan economy.
“Why is this government hell-bent on wasting money on the project during these tough economic times yet it is similar to the Huduma Namba?
“What will happen to the over 1,000 employed by the Huduma Number now that the government wants to tender what could have been done by Kenyans to Pakistan? Why are we risking our data?” he questioned.
The only difference between the UPI and the Huduma Number according to the activists, was the name and the amount in billions that will go into actualising the proposed document.
"The government spent Ksh6.5 billion in the rollout of Huduma Number, and the government will spend an additional Ksh11.2 billion for the rollout of the UPI yet both projects have the same functionalities.
"At the same time, all the resources needed for the rollout of the project are in Kenya but the government has chosen to contract other people. That is just a way of stealing taxpayers' money because it is easier that way," added Ogola.
On February 2023, the ICT Cabinet Secretary Eliud Owalo announced that the government would complete the rollout of the digital Identity cards by February 2024.
He noted that the move would enhance the efficiency of services such as health, national security and tax collection.
"The rationale for conceptualising the digital ID is informed by the fact that Kenyans do not need to physically flash an ID card in order to access government services.
"Kenyans should be able to conduct business from wherever they are once we have integrated government services onto technological platforms," he explained.
Earlier on May 24, President William Ruto offered Colin Howell, an internationally acclaimed designer, a job in the production of digital IDs, after impressing him with a PowerPoint presentation on how his journey across Africa inspired the design of the Kenyan passport.
"I like what Colin said, that he is looking forward to working with us on our new passport and identity infrastructure. It will be impossible for us to work with you only if you are willing to work with our young people, our experts, and our designers so that we can be able to pass on the experience to our young people," Ruto stated.
