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Kenya cabinet secretary warns against fake news on social media

By , ITWeb
Kenya , 14 Aug 2017

Kenya cabinet secretary warns against fake news on social media

Acting cabinet secretary for the Kenyan ministry of internal security and coordination of national government, Fred Matiang'i has said the country is safe, following "impressions being created by irresponsible use of social media that there are security challenges," deeming these as false.

As reported by CIO East Africa, Matiang'i has lauded the media for being objective in the reporting during the elections, but warned some social media users against misusing the platforms.

He noted that some social media users have been posting messages that border hate-speech or deemed inflammatory, further confirming the arrest of users misusing the platforms.

Matiang'i was speaking at his Harambee House office in Nairobi where he also confirmed the arrest of some social media users for abusing the platforms and spreading hatred and inflammatory messages.

"There has been an increase in a number of inflammatory and inciting messages on social media. Remember that we have a law governing the use of social media," he said.

He further stated that he was aware of some heckling in parts of Mathare and Kibra in Nairobi and parts of Kisumu County, but assured Kenyans of safety.

Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) issued a press statement following the sentiments made earlier by the secretary, stating that the security personnel deployed to quell unrest in various parts of the country have been using excessive force, which is unlawful and unacceptable.

"All Form 34As and Form 34Bs must be uploaded by the IEBC on their public portal. The availability of all these forms will enable us to conclude our report as to the overall credibility of the just concluded presidential poll. We urge the IEBC to move with speed and upload these forms in line with the relevant election laws," concluded the statement.

KNCHR also established that 24 people had lost their lives since 8 August 2017 to date and this can be directly linked to the post-election environment.

CIO notes that "Unlike 2007 where Kenyans had the front row seat to the happenings of violence in the country, [in] 2017 one would say the media has been somewhat cautious with their airings."

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