State House distances itself from bloggers attacking NMG on Twitter

State House responds to claims of paying bloggers to attack NMG

Mumbi Mutuko

June 7, 2019 8:51 AM

State House addresses twitter assassins attacking NMG

Chief Of Staff, Office of The President Nzioka Waita

State House Chief of Staff Nzioka Waita has disassociated his office from attacks by bloggers on Nation Media Group.

Mr Waita said that the attacks came from elsewhere since State House was not part of the smear campaign against NMG adding they shared good relations with the media house.

“I can assure you this did not come from State House,” he said when asked for comment.

“It would be counter-intuitive (for us) to engage in such an attack after all the work we have done building relationships… The attacks are coming from elsewhere, and we all know who uses such attacks — and it is not the presidency, and the presidency is not collective,” he added.

Chief Of Staff, Office of The President Nzioka Waita Pulse Live Kenya

NMG’s coverage of the government

On Thursday a hashtag was trending on Twitter where NMG was trolled over coverage seen as critical of government projects.

According to the Daily Nation the campaign was designed by a Nairobi-based public relations firm.

They criticized NMG’s coverage of the standard gauge railway and the proposed housing project.

The bloggers also took issue with NMG’s coverage of the government taking loans, the 2022 succession politics and succession at the Kenya Revenue Authority.

Nation Centre in Nairobi Pulse Live Kenya

Media Council

During the troll on Twitter, the bloggers also published photographs of Nation journalists and columnists who have covered these stories.

The Media Council of Kenya condemned the unwarranted attacks. He called on the police to investigate the attack, the bloggers and their financiers.

“The council wishes to express solidarity with the Nation Media Group, and indeed the wider media industry, in condemning the unwarranted attack,” he said.

Mumbi Mutuko