CEO of Bridget Connect Consultancy Bob Ndolo presented a public petition to the national assembly seeking to have Tiktok app and its usage in Kenya banned. The public petition which was received by the Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula during the Tuesday 15th August 2023 parliament sitting, and in pursuant to standing order 225 2B – which requires the speaker to present to the house any petition other than those presented by a member – read out the petition which sited 4 major reasons for the ban of the app;
- The platform promotes explicit content
- The platform promotes vulgar language
- The platform promotes offensive behavior
- The platform promotes violence
The above reasons according to Bob Ndolo are a threat to the cultural and religious values of Kenya. The petition added that the internet usage in Kenya is not regulated by the Communication Authority of Kenya leading to the failure to remove or block content deemed inappropriate or offensive. The petition continued to state that Tiktok has been indicated in several private cases citing example in 2019 where the app was fined 5.7 million US Dollars by the United States Federal Trade Commission for illegally collecting data from children under the age of 13 such as location, their names, email addresses without their parents consent hence violating the children’s online privacy protection right.
In addition Mr. Ndolo further stated in the petition that Tiktok allegedly collects a significant amount of data on it’s users, including information about their device, location, and browsing histories which is later shared with third party companies without the users consent. The petition continues to worry if the app is not banned in Kenya its addictive usage nature would lead to a decline in academic performance, an ascend in mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and sleep depression amongst the youth. The petition asked the house to intervene and takes immediate actions to safeguard Kenyans from the negative effects arising from the use of Tiktok app in Kenya.
Moments after the petition was tabled, a debate followed with members of parliament opposing the total ban of the app. Lead by the majority leader Kimani Ichungwa, who stated that there is nothing evil or criminal about the usage of the app and himself he is a user too. The minority leader – Opiyo Wandayi – also opposed the petition citing that in this digital growing world as a country we cannot remain behind and in digital darkness.
The growth of the platform usage since 2020 in Kenya has been on a rapid rise making Kenya one of the top users of the app representing about 50% of the global usage. Many content creators earn from the platform through selling of their merchants or receiving gifts in form of flowers or animals during live sections which in return is converted to money. Maina Njeri – Women representative Kirinyaga – also opposed the petition stating that the high rise in unemployment cases amongst young people has led them to continually earn from Tiktok.
The legislators all in agreement wants the app to be regulated and not banned completely, to avoid cases where users post obscene images and videos which according to numerous prior complaints and cry-outs happens during the late nights or wee hours of the mornings. The petition has now been forwarded to the Public Petitions Committee of the National Assembly for discussions before a report is tabled in Parliament in accordance to standing order number 227 2.