Political SMSs to be vetted

Politicians will be required to submit their campaign text messages for vetting at least 48 hours before they are sent.

And the SMSs must only be sent to mobile phone users who have subscribed for them.

These are some of the measures put in place by the Communications Commission of Kenya to curb the spread of hate messages via SMS.

According to the guidelines, texts can only be sent between 8am and 6pm and should be in either Kiswahili or English.

The sponsors of the messages will also have to be identified and are expected to present documents before they are authorised to send the texts.

Alarming and hateful messages transmitted over mobile phone networks are said to have incited the violence before and after the 2007 General Election.

The guidelines, introduced to the public at the Inter-Continental Hotel in Nairobi on Wednesday, cover SMSs sent in bulk.

This is usually done by companies with databases of mobile phone users, who pay extra for information they are interested in.

And it is these companies, referred to as Content Service Providers, that will be primarily responsible for ensuring that the process of sending the texts adheres to the new guidelines.

They are also barred from sharing or selling their databases for the purposes of sending political messages, tracking of polls or political lobbying.

CCK director Francis Wangusi said the guidelines would go hand-in-hand with the registration of SIM cards.

“Registration will help trace messages that have not been approved,” said Mr Wangusi.

Information PS Bitange Ndemo said that an individual who forwarded the message would be held responsible for being a conduit of the hateful content.

“Somebody can go to Uganda and do it from there. It’s actually a very difficult exercise,” he said.

Presidential aspirants Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto have the four-number SMS service for their supporters to get regular updates on their campaigns.