Kenyan Officials Warn TikTok and Social Media Fueling African Coups Through Misinformation

High-ranking Kenyan officials are voicing increasing apprehension regarding the potential of social media platforms, particularly TikTok, to destabilize African political landscapes. 

These concerns centre on the spread of misinformation and its alleged role in fomenting unrest and military takeovers. Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura recently articulated a theory suggesting a coordinated "psychological operation" is underway on social media. According to Mwaura, unnamed actors are intentionally discrediting incumbent African leaders while simultaneously promoting military figures, potentially inciting coups across the continent. 

"There is a very deliberate effort; I don't know where it is coming from, but there is a deliberate effort to indignify certain African leaders to make them look old or corrupt and promote others, especially those with a military orientation, and we need to be very careful about that because maybe somebody somewhere is engineering coups around African countries," he said.

Mwaura's allegations, made in an interview with NTV, point to a deliberate effort to portray sitting presidents as corrupt and ineffective, thereby creating an environment conducive to military intervention. The concerns raised by Mwaura echo similar sentiments expressed by Francis Atwoli, Secretary General of the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU). 

Atwoli recently called for stricter regulations on social media platforms, cautioning that unchecked misinformation could destabilize national economies and incite violent conflicts, drawing parallels to situations in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Speaking at the COTU Shop Stewards Meeting, Atwoli urged the Kenyan government to consider regulatory models employed by countries like China.

“Those on social media must stop propaganda. You must love this country; if you do not love it, investors will go away. You will begin fights and end up like Sudan and Congo,” he said.

Reinforcing these concerns, Noordin Haji, Director General of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), emphasized the growing threat of disinformation campaigns. Haji acknowledges the importance of free speech but cautions that it must be balanced against the imperative of national security. 

"Across the continent, we have seen a considerable increase in the use of social media platforms for advocacy and mobilization for civil actions. However, this has led to the emergence of coordinated and sustained misinformation and disinformation,” he said.

According to Haji, the misuse of social media platforms has fueled sustained disinformation campaigns that threaten both national and regional stability.