Matiang'i Says Gov't Will Not Shut Down Facebook During Elections

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has dismissed reports that the government intends to shut down the internet and social media platforms during the August 9th elections.

Speaking on Saturday, Matiang’i insisted that the government will not intrude or interfere with the freedoms of Kenyans, terming threats that Facebook would be suspended as mere opinions by individuals.

“Some people are saying that maybe during elections we will shut down Facebook…That is a view, the position of the government is very clear; we will respect the Constitution and all the rights of our people. I have not heard anything about shutting down social media or interfering with Facebook because of the elections,” said Matiang’i.

“We are a mature government, criticism is a way of life and we are used to it. Sometimes when citizens criticize us it’s okay, that is what they are supposed to do because we are not leading animals, we are leading human beings, some of who have ideas better than us.”

“We work in a democratic setup and we will not interfere with social media or the internet just because of elections. My colleague in the ICT and I have said this before, that is nowhere in our cards. Some commissioner expressed an opinion which we are not going to take,” he added.

He noted that the threat by a National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) commissioner to suspend Facebook should be taken as a personal opinion and not the position of the government.

 “We cannot just wake up one morning and do things which Kenyans are not used to. Kenyans are used to freedoms and we will live in peace and ensure that citizens have the peace they need during the electioneering period,” he said.

On Friday, NCIC Commissioner Danvas Makori gave the American social media giant seven days to comply with hate speech regulations, failure to which the commission will recommend its suspension.

"We have written to Facebook and requested that they comply with the regulatory requirements we put across. If Facebook fails to do that, we will recommend that Facebook services be suspended in Kenya. Facebook has seven days to reply to us, failure to which we take the action of suspension immediately," he said.