Thursday, April 20, 2023 –Elon Musk-owned Twitter Company has today withdrawn thousands of blue ticks from its users in Kenya.
Many verified accounts lost their verification blue tick with companies and top public figures being the most hit in the purge following recent Musk’s take over of Twitter last year.
Tech guru Elon Musk had threatened to take away verification from accounts that don’t pay for the company’s Twitter Blue subscription service. Initially, the badge, represented by a blue checkmark next to a user’s name, indicated that the account was authentic and belonged to a renowned brand, public figure or celebrity.
Several accounts owned by Mediamax Network Limited, Nation Media Group, Radio Africa Group and Royal Media Services had already lost their badges by the evening of Thursday April 20.
Moreover, pages run by the government including the Ministry of Interior and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations were also among the first ones to be affected.
In the private sector, Safaricom lost its verification on its customer care page that has over 1.6 million followers.
Others affected are celebrities and journalists including CNN news anchor Larry Madowo, who is among celebrities who had earlier indicated that they had no intention of paying for the service.
Human Rights activist Boniface Mwangi and singer Suzanna Owiyo also lost their blue ticks with the former maintaining that this will not stop him from discharging his human rights duties.
“Blue tick is gone but I am still The People’s Watchman,” he tweeted immediately after losing the tick.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua was the first top politician who lost his blue tick two weeks ago.
