Netflix‘s hit South African drama The Polygamist has sparked controversy in Kenya after a Nairobi County official called for the series to be banned, accusing it of promoting harmful ideas about marriage and unfairly portraying polygamous families.
Geoffrey Mosiria, Nairobi County’s Chief Officer for Citizen Engagement and Customer Service, says the drama presents polygamous men as “womanisers and animals” while encouraging viewers to become suspicious of their partners.
For Mosiria, the issue is more than just entertainment.
He revealed that he is the 21st of 22 siblings and said he comes from a polygamous family, making the show’s portrayal particularly offensive to him.
If you say polygamy is bad and I am a product of polygamy, then you mean my father made a mistake bringing me into this world.
Mosiria believes the series fuels mistrust in relationships and says Netflix should remove it from its Kenyan catalogue.
He also warned that legal action could follow if the streaming platform fails to act.
This movie should be banned completely from Kenya. It should be suspended from Netflix, and we are going to sue.
Based on Zimbabwean author Sue Nyathi’s 2012 novel of the same name, The Polygamist premiered globally on Netflix on June 12.
The 22-episode series follows wealthy businessman Jonasi Gomora as the secrets surrounding his marriages and affairs begin to unravel, turning his seemingly perfect life into chaos.
The drama quickly attracted international attention and entered Netflix’s Global Top 10 non-English TV rankings shortly after its release, cementing its status as one of the platform’s most talked-about African productions.
Mosiria’s remarks have since divided opinion online.
While some social media users support his criticism and argue that the series reinforces negative stereotypes about polygamous families, others insist that The Polygamist is a work of fiction and that viewers should have the freedom to decide whether to watch it.