Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura now claims that TikTok is being used to promote military takeovers on the African continent.
Speaking on Monday, April 7, Mwaura alleged that there is a psychological operation on the TikTok platform to fuel the military coups.
"If you look at TikTok, there seems to be a very silent psychological operation promoting the takeover of the military, and some people have criticized me in the past for saying that there could be external interference on how people tend to make their decisions," said Mwaura.
The Government Spokesperson pointed out that the operation humiliates African presidents and portrays them as old and corrupt while promoting military leaders.
"There is a deliberate effort to indignify certain African leaders to make them look old or corrupt and promote others, especially those of military orientation. We need to be very careful about that because maybe somebody somewhere is engineering coups around African countries," Mwaura added.
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Mwaura’s claims comes days after National Intelligence Security (NIS) Director General Noordin Haji said the increasing misuse of social media remains a significant security threat.
Speaking on Thursday April 3 in Naivasha, Nakuru County, Haji said social media platforms are being used for misinformation campaigns that could destabilize security in Africa.
"Across the continent, we have witnessed a considerable increase in the use of social media platforms for advocacy and mobilization for civil action. However, this has resulted in the warring emergence of coordinated and sustained misinformation and disinformation aimed at misguiding citizens, leading them to make poor decisions or fostering misguided perceptions of their governments,” said Haji.
He added, “Although free speech is vital for our democratic freedoms, it is essential to find a delicate balance between national security and the right to free expression.”
