By Andrew Kariuki and Peter John
The Attorney General (AG) and the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) have asked the High Court to first determine their application seeking to lift the suspension of sections of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act before proceeding with plans to consolidate six related petitions challenging the law.
Appearing before Justice Lawrence Mugambi, counsels Emmanuel Bitta and Paul Nyamodi for the AG and Patrick Lutta for the CAK, argued that the interim suspension orders were issued without the participation of key state agencies and should therefore be reviewed before any further steps are taken.
They contended that the petitioners failed to comply with the court’s earlier directive to serve the respondents with their submissions, making it necessary for the court to first hear the State’s application to vacate the suspension.
“Before hearing the consolidation application, the court should first hear and determine our application for stay,” the State submitted.
The suspended sections of the Act cover provisions on false publication, cyber harassment, and unauthorized access, which have been the subject of constitutional challenges by activists and civil rights groups.
The six petitions before the court argue that these provisions infringe on fundamental rights such as freedom of expression, privacy and access to information. The High Court had earlier issued interim orders suspending the contested sections pending full hearing and determination of the cases.
Justice Mugambi has since directed that the consolidated matters be mentioned tomorrow for further directions on how the applications will proceed.
The court’s ruling on whether to lift the suspension could significantly influence the enforcement of Kenya’s cybercrime framework, determining if the contested provisions remain inactive or are reinstated as the petitions continue.
