A Nairobi court yesterday warned Kenya's permanent secretary in the ministry of information and communications, Dr. Bitange Ndemo, against posting comments on social media regarding a suit challenging the planned December 31 digital TV broadcasting migration.

Judge Isaac Lenaola said Dr. Ndemo's comments on Twitter and Facebook had come to his attention and asked the permanent secretary to instead channel his grievances in court. The Judge told a state counsel representing the information ministry that social media would not help resolve the matter since it is now in court.

The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek), a consumer lobby group, has gone to court to challenge the decision to switch-off analogue TV signal transmission in the capital city, Nairobi, on 31 December 2012.

The body wants the court to compel Kenya's ministry of information and communications, which is overseeing the process through the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK), to delay the migration until the initial global deadline of 2015.

Ndemo took to his Twitter account to protest the move three days after the suit was filed.

“I find it most unfortunate that Cofek has gone to court to stop the planned digital switchover on December 31st..The cost of not migrating will be far too greater if we don't bite the bullet now and enable frequency spectrum for advancement,” Ndemo wrote on his Twitter account on December 13.

“There are more than 150 new applications awaiting clearance to start digital broadcast. 20 of these are already on air. If we get 200 new broadcasters, we shall have achieved our quest for having a pluralistic and diversified broadcast environment,” Ndemo tweeted.

The consumer lobby group, though, claims that most Kenyans cannot afford to purchase the set-top boxes required for the switch over, as the devices can cost up to $75 each. And this is despite government’s decision to remove import duty, a move that was expected to reduce the price by half.

The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) is expected to file its reply on Thursday when the hearing of the case kicks off on Thursday.

Kenya’s government plans to switch to a digital signal ahead of the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) 2015 global deadline.