NCIC denies banning the term 'tugege'

"We wish to correct the information being peddled through social media to the effect that the NCIC is planning to ban the term "Tugege"," the NCI said on X, formerly Twitter. 

"The Commission disassociates itself from these allegations. Kindly ignore them." 

The brief statement refuted blogger Cyprian Nyakundi's claim that the commission was considering a ban on the word and would seek arrests and prosecutions against those found guilty.

Although the exact meaning of the term 'tugege' is unknown, it has been used to describe supporters of a particular political party who are primarily from the vote-rich Mt. Kenya region.

Last year, the NCIC drew criticism for releasing a list of words it hoped to outlaw due to 'hate speech' ahead of Kenya's general election.

NCIC chair Samuel Kobia the words included in the lexicon had the potential to incite violence between two or more ethnic communities in Kenya.

Some of the words that had been flagged included, among others:  Hatupangwingwi, Watu wa kurusha mawe, kill and mende.

We wish to correct the information being peddled through social media to the effect that the NCIC is planning to ban the term "Tugege". The Commission disassociates itself from these allegations. Kindly ignore them.#AmaniMilele #AmaniKwaGround #Letpeacewin pic.twitter.com/ISUS3mKy86