President William Ruto has weighed in on the pending lawsuit against Meta by Kenyan workers who have decried the exploitation they experienced when working as content moderators for the platform.
The President expressed his dismay over the lawsuit that has dragged on since 2022 which mentioned both the outsourcing company, Sama, and Meta itself.
“Those people were taken to court, and they had real trouble. They really bothered me. Now I can report to you that we have changed the law, so nobody will take you to court again on any matter,” Ruto stated according to Time Magazine.
Ruto stated that this move was a result of Sama’s planning to relocate to Uganda because many Kenyans were giving them trouble.
President William Ruto and President of Global Affairs at Meta Nick Clegg at State House Nairobi on March 18, 2024.
The workers, most hired under the guise of working at call centers, reported having to watch traumatising content including rape and murders leading to some of them developing Post-traumatic disorder (PTSD).
In an investigation done by Time in 2022, they also revealed the meager pay of $1.50 per hour despite the strenuous nature of their job and different prior agreements.
Meta has been named in the suit because even though Sama did the hiring, Meta reportedly supervised and set the terms for the work and designed and managed the software required for the task.
Meta has since denied these accusations terming them as both inaccurate and disappointing.
Now, Ruto’s intervention could see Meta removed from the lawsuit as the President seeks to make Kenya more attractive to big tech companies by cushioning them from lawsuits.
If a bill currently in Kenya’s senate passes, outsourcing companies’ clients like Meta and OpenAI will be excluded from all lawsuits against their contractors in Kenya.
Sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot, the bill is reportedly in the best interest of the ever-growing number of unemployed youth in the country.
“Industry players insist that if we are to fully realize our potential, this is their ask to us as a country,” he said in an X post.
In a statement to Time, however, Meta denied any involvement in advocating for the changes.
Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot at a past event.
Aaron Cheruiyot
