Senators fault 'clueless' ICT ministry over exploitation of young Kenyan girls on TikTok

Senators have called on the Data Protection Commission under the ICT Ministry to regulate internet usage to curb the exploitation of young children on social media platforms.

Nominated Senator Hezena Lemaletian raised concerns of young Kenyan girls at risk of online predators over the failure to regulate digital platforms such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram.

Senator Lemaletian cited the recent feature by BBC, which highlighted viral cases of young girls dancing on TikTok under the guise of digital gifting and monetization features, saying the platforms without age restrictions were exploiting minors in violation of child safety protocols.

“The report, which ran on March 3, 2025, highlights serious concerns about child safety, the failure of digital platforms to enforce age restrictions, and the increasing vulnerability of minors to online predators. Many girls have been lured to exploitation activities under the guise of digital gifting and monetization features, raising urgent questions about the effectiveness of existing protections,” she said.

“Without stringent safeguards, these platforms risk becoming conduits for abuse and violations, not only for abuse of children but also Kenya’s legal framework for child protection.”

Her sentiments were echoed by Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi and his Nyandarua counterpart John Methu, who faulted the government for not putting in place guidelines and laws to protect young people against online predators and harmful internet content.

“We would want our people to continue using internet to make money but cannot just leave it open, such that anybody can just upload content of a kid, and the kid is not even aware the content is going out and there is no protection or no way the government is able to protect such a kid,” said Senator Methu.

Senator Osotsi, on his part, took issue with the ICT Ministry, the Data Protection Commission and the Senate Committee on ICT, claiming that the departments had incompetent officials.

According to Osotsi, who is a former member of the ICT Committee, the heads of various ICT sector departments are clueless since the majority of them lack proper technology background, citing among them the current Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) boss David Mugonyi who is a former journalist.

“I participated in developing the Data Protection Act, but I want to say the challenge that we are having with the office of Data Protection commissioner is because the Act has not been properly implemented,” he said.

“That is a matter that should be looked at by the ICT committee. I am no longer in the ICT Committee because I was very frustrated as a member, given that my background is in the ICT sector. Everyone in this ministry is clueless, starting from the Communications Authority to the Ministry, everywhere, the ICT Authority.”

He added: “I think we cannot develop in terms of ICT if we have people running these ministries or sectors in the ministries who do not understand technology itself. The Communication Authority, for instance, is headed by a journalist, and the Ministry of ICT is headed by people who have no clue about ICT, and I think that is the starting point.”

The Senator went on to compare the current ICT ministry with when Bitange Ndemo was the Permanent Secretary, opining that the government should prioritise on picking department heads based on their competencies.

“We saw this country make strides in ICT when Bitange Ndemo was in charge of that ministry, and I think it is time that we place people who are qualified and experienced in the sector to run institution under ICT,’ said Osotsi.

“If you look at the questions asked and my understanding of the Ministry, there is a serious competence issue. When we look at the office of the Data Commission, we have a tendency to give all jobs to lawyers, even jobs that require technical input. CA performed well (under former DG Francis) Wangusi…a journalist could not understand detailed information on spectrum management and issues of transmission of signal. I left the committee because it is on the verge of death because of leadership.”