Members of Kenya's parliament received a citizen's petition to ban the use of the social media application TikTok. The petitioner argued the application contributes to the undermining of cultural and religious morality, media report.
The motion was presented by Bob Ndolo, CEO of Bridget Connect Consultancy, in a petition to the National Assembly on Tuesday.
"While it has gained popularity among the youth, the content being shared on the platform is inappropriate promoting violence, explicit sexual content, violence, hate speech, vulgar language, and offensive behavior which is a serious threat to the cultural and religious values in Kenya," Ndolo stated in his petition, as cited by local media.
Ndolo suggested that the government should safeguard citizens from the negative effects arising from the use of the app, or altogether ban it in Kenya, according to media.
"The petitioner should come to seek on how to regulate the usage of the app, age group and content uploaded for a certain age to watch, outright banning would be killing careers of many young people who are earning a living through it," said Parliamentary Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wa, as cited by media.
According to news outlets, Ichung'wa suggested that the platform's content should be regulated instead of banned.
The petition will be considered by the Public Petitions Committee, which will give its verdict after 60 days, media reported.
TikTok continues to be the fastest-growing social network and is extremely popular among 18-24-year-olds globally, with 44% of this audience preferring to use it.