Giant mobile service provider Safaricom has revealed the cause behind the slow internet speed witnessed in the country amid intense protests against the Finance Bill 2024.

In a statement, Safaricom said two of their undersea cables which deliver internet in and out of the country had experienced an outage.

“We have experienced an outage on two of our undersea cables that deliver internet in and out of the country,” Safaricom stated.

“We have activated redundancy measures to minimise service interruption and keep you connected as we wait for full restoration of the cables,” Safaricom added.

Safaricom alternatives

The mobile network provider advised subscribers that they would experience reduced internet speeds and intermittency on various apps including the Mpesa and Safaricom apps.

Alternatively, the company advised its subscribers to use the USSD code *334# to access Mpesa services or use the SIM toolkit.

The interruptions come just a day after the government allayed fears that there was a plan to disable internet services in the country in reaction to the Tuesday, June 25, 2024, protests.

In a statement to newsrooms on Monday, June 25, 2024, Communications Authority Director General and CEO David Mugonyi said they had received reports of an imminent internet shutdown.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the authority has no intentions whatsoever to shut down the internet traffic or interfere with the quality of connectivity,” Mugonyi said.

Mugonyi remarked that doing so would be an affront to the Constitution as a whole and the freedom of expression.

He added that shutting the internet would sabotage the fast-growing digital economy which acts as a livelihood for many Kenyans.

“We urge Kenyans to use the digital space with respect for all and within the confines of the law,” Mugonyi noted.

The Tuesday, June 25, 2024, protests escalated to unprecedented levels after irate demonstrators stormed Parliament and the Senate, forcing legislators to be evacuated to the basement.

During the confrontation with law enforcement officers, several protesters were reported shot with others feared dead.

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