(3 Minutes Read)
The High Court has suspended the implementation of a new digital identity card known as Maisha Card which the government had announced will be renewed every 10 years, pending determination of a petition filed by a Garissa-based lobby group.
Justice Lawrence Mugambi suspended the implementation of the Unique Personal Identifier known as Maisha Namba, the rollout of the 3rd Generation ID card, the Maisha Digital ID, and the Maisha Database, which is expected to consolidate existing and independent databases into a single register.
The Court is satisfied that based on the latest disclosure, an order staying any further and/or continued implementation pending the hearing and determination of this application ought to be issued, pronounced the judge.
Haki Na Sheria Initiative stated that the government had confirmed the mass collection, processing, and storage of data with plans to issue a UPI and the Maisha Digital ID and the enrollment of the Maisha database. However, the constitutionality of the database has been disputed and the matter is pending hearing before the High Court on October 4, 2024.
The lobby said there is a great risk that members of the public will be prejudiced as certain types of personal information will be disclosed and their right to privacy breached, in the absence of proposals on how the data will be protected. The court heard that the rollout of the Maisha ecosystem is also bound to solidify the already widened exclusion of marginalised citizens.
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The court was told that the main grounds of challenging the Maisha Namba database rollout is the consequent irreparable violations of numerous fundamental rights and freedoms provided for in the constitution. This is the third attempt at stopping rollout after last year’s temporary stoppage of Maisha Card, before the order was lifted in February.
