Kenyan oppn seeks probe into Cambridge Analytica vote role

Bloomberg

Kenya’s biggest opposition party called for an independent probe of Cambridge Analytica’s role in last year’s protrac-ted presidential elections that were marred by violence.
“We would be interested in the truth about the role of Cambridge Analytica in spreading divisive propaganda in our election cycle,” Orange Democratic Movement Secretary-General Edwin Sifuna said on Tuesday by phone from Nairobi, the capital. “We support an
inquiry into their involvement.”
Channel 4, a London-based broadcaster, reported that Cambridge Analytica worked secretly for incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta’s campaign last year, including rebranding his
Jubilee Party and writing its manifesto. The company denied any role in
negative political campaigning in Kenya, Channel 4 said.
Kenya held two presidential elections last year, in which clashes left at least 92 people dead. The first, in August, was annulled by the Supreme Court after the opposition claimed the vote was rigged. Kenyatta was declared the winner of the second round held in October when the opposition failed in another court bid to have the ballot declared invalid. Mark Turnbull, the managing director of Cambridge Analytica’s political division, said in a secretly filmed video published on Channel 4’s website that the company worked
on the past two Kenyan election campaigns for Kenyatta.