Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki and National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director General Noordin Haji are among top government officials scheduled to testify before the House team investigating the controversial Worldcoin’s activities.
Also to appear before the Committee is the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Governor Kamau Thugge
The Ad-hoc Committee chaired by Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo has lined up a long list of witnesses to testify on the controversial activities of the cryptocurrency project World Coin in Kenya.
The seventeen-member Committee will seek to establish the linkage between the cryptocurrency trading in the country and Worldcoin's recent activities with more emphasis on the source of the cash that was being dished to the Kenyans before being subjected to iris scan.
“Our work is cut out and we shall be calling in a number of witnesses including experts to shed light on this matter,” Tongoyo said.
“We have very limited time to ensure that Kenyans get all the answers they deserve, and as the people’s representatives, we shall endeavour to give this inquiry our best shot.”
The Committee held its inaugural meeting on Monday.
The mandate of the committee includes inquiring into the legal and regulatory compliance of the operations of Worldcoin and its subsidiary partners in Kenya and beyond.
It will also establish if the iris scans exposed Kenyans to any potential health hazards, as well as the potential use of the data collected and its safety in the hands of the collector.
“Citizens have the right, whenever personal data is provided, to have clear and accessible information in relation to the assignment, use and purpose for which the data is collected and processed, especially with regard to sensitive data, such as biometric data,” Maara MP Kareke Mbiuki, a member of the ad-hoc committee said.
Also lined up to appear before the Committee are Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha who is expected to provide information on potential health hazards resulting from the reported iris scans.
Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Director Mohamed Amin, Data Protection Commissioner Immaculate Kassait and KICC CEO will also appear.
Also lined to appear are the Office of the Attorney General, ICT CS Eliud Owalo, and the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) and the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC).
“These sessions will seek to evaluate whether the operations of Worldcoin complied with the Data Protection Act, and other relevant Laws in Kenya,” Tongoyo said.
“We will inquire if there are any necessary legislative interventions that can be made to avert a repetition of such situations in the future.”
Last month, hundreds of Kenyans were seen queuing at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre(KICC) to scan their eyeballs in return for the Worldcoin cryptocurrency tokens valued at about Sh7,700.
Worldcoin is a crypto wallet app launched on July 24, 2023.
It uses a combination of cryptocurrency and biometric registration to create a new kind of global identity service.
Worldcoin was co-founded by Open AI CEO Sam Altman.
It aims to create a global financial network and identity by showing proof of personhood.
Currently, it is readily available in cities like Nairobi, Hong Kong, Lisbon, Mexico City, New York, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Singapore and Paris.
