Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki on Thursday, March 21, revealed that the government has written to TikTok explaining that it is not satisfied with their level of compliance with Kenyan laws.
Appearing before the Public Petitions Committee, Kindiki noted that ByteDance Limited, a Chinese multi-billion company that owns TikTok would be required to respond to the letter, failure to which his ministry would take administrative action.
He, however, noted that it would be premature to ban TikTok in Kenya at the moment without considering the views of the owners and those set to be affected.
He added that an extensive analysis would need to be carried out to weigh the risks and benefits of executing a stern action such as banning the platform locally.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew during a past meeting
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Shou Zi Chew
“I don’t think we’re in a position to declare the dangers outweigh the benefits. It’s a bit premature. We should work out a program where we have a policy that is evidence-based to assess whether the risks are more prominent than the benefits,” he noted.
“It will be premature. What we’re doing right now is a procedural requirement by law. Whatever the measures the government will take is administrative action and there’s a procedure including listening to those affected.”
Nonetheless, Kindiki warned of irreversible damage if action is not taken against regulating cyberspace. He noted that criminals capitalise on platforms such as TikTok to spread their message.
“All the social media platforms including TikTok have now become a real theatre for misuse by criminals to endanger public safety and security,” he remarked.
“Tiktok and other social media platforms are increasingly being used to spread malicious content which is illegal, they are also being used to generate propaganda, including propaganda for war.”
During the session, MPs also raised an alarm about 34 states in the US banning their officials from using TikTok on government devices due to security concerns.
Responding to this, Kindiki explained that all measures are being considered in his ministry and a comprehensive analysis would be carried out before any action is implemented.
“Our Ministry coordinates the cybersecurity program of the country. Going forward, we should invest in internal security and defense arrangements but we need both military and internal security expertise to provide the fourth arm of our country’s defence and that is cyberspace. The potential to hurt the country through cyberspace is big,” he added.
“Let’s not only look at quick fixes but have a long-term comprehensive plan and help the country from not banning TikTok.”
Interior Ministry CS, Kithure Kindiki signs documents in Transnzoia County on March 18
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Kithure Kindiki
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