Angry Mob

Angry MobLast week, the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) issued a public notice that as from 28 May 2018, anyone filming videos for public viewing will be required to obtain a license for the same. Following KFCB’s announcement, the CEO, Ezekiel Mutua, emphasized that the regulation applies to any video, including those recorded using mobile phones, as long as it is meant for public exhibition. He further explained that public exhibition includes publishing the videos on social media and the Internet.

KFCB’s new regulations will mean that anyone intending to publish any videos online will require the following:

  • Pay an Annual Registration Fee of Kes.12,000
  • Pay Kes.5,000 for every video you produce (as long as it is under 40 minutes)
  • Pay Kes.1,000 for every day you take shooting the video
  • After production is complete, send the video to KFCB for approval before you hit publish

Failure to do this will attract a fine not exceeding Kes.100,000 or imprisonment of a term not exceeding five years or both.

This did not sit well with Kenyans and they took it to social media to express their grievances and concerns. The new regulations are believed to be aimed at stifling freedom of speech as many Kenyans online have put it. They believe that the licensing regulations will actually kill content creation in the country and some have even gone as far as calling for the disbandment of KFCB:

So far, KFCB still maintains that the regulates are in line with the law and that they are implementing them in good faith. However, with the increasing calls to disband the body from the online community, the story could end in the way that NTSA did – Kenyans already have an online petition going: