Ezekiel Mutua Biography
Ezekiel Mutua was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Film Classification Board in October 2015. He has a long history of success as a consummate career media practitioner, with immense passion for communication and opinion driving in both private and public sector with skill sets ranging from writing, political campaigns, government, corporate communications and editing.
Ezekiel Mutua responsibilities as the CEO of KFCB are:
- Ensuring that there is effective communication between the board and the management as well as between different levels of management,
- Enhancing the organization’s image by fostering corporate culture that promotes ethical practices and good corporate citizenship,
- Ensuring compliance with the Constitution of Kenya and any other law relevant in the management of the Board but to name a few.
Ezekiel Mutua Education Background
He holds a Master’s of Arts in Communication Studies from the University of Nairobi
He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology and Linguistics From Kenyatta University.
Ezekiel Mutua Job History
2007- 2011 : Director of Information and Public Communication
2001- 2007: Secretary General of Kenya Union of Journalists.
1998: Sub- editor at the Nation Media Group
1994: Trainee reporter
Ezekiel Mutua Membership
Ezekiel Mutua is in the Board of Directors of Kenya Copyright Board as the alternate to Principal Secretary, Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT)
Ezekiel Mutua Proposed amendments in the Films
Ezekiel Mutua proposed amendments in the Films, Stage Plays and Publications 2016 which would have put unnecessary measures on stakeholders and other actors in the Kenyan film industry. Some of the measures put up reportedly include ‘Kenyans taking videos using their mobile phones to register them with the board before posting them on Twitter or Facebook’ and ‘Internet service providers review all the videos exhibited and distributed through their platforms, failure to which they would be fined Sh2 million or be imprisoned for two years or both.’
These requirements seem needless and were deftly rejected by creatives and members of the film and theatre industry in Kenya. During a public forum the invitee were very vocal concerning the prposed amendment.
“We take this document to the shredder and in good faith start to engage afresh,” which was apparently met with a resounding ‘yes’ from the crowd, later adding “what is the crime in the creation of content? Unless you want people to stop creating content.”George Gachara, Director at The Nest Collective said.
Singer Joji Baro, who is a member of the LBGT community in Kenya accused the KFCB of banning his music without any substantial reason and also said that Ezekiel Mutua had affected the Lesbian and Gay community negatively.“You have affected the LGBT [community] negatively most of the time, yet we are not being represented in decision making or even in expressing our concerns. Why? And I demand an explanation to that!”
In his defense Ezekiel Mutua said that all the proposals put forward were formed with many other stakeholders in mind.He said it was against their mandate to allow children to get ruined by inappropriate content in the name of profit. He said that Kenya as a progressive country cannot afford to be passive recipient of foreign content that could corrupt the moral values of the children and compromise the national security.
Ezekiel Mutua diplomatic passport
In September, Ezekiel Mutua was invited to the summit by Google an internal event for policymakers and advocates for online safety around the world. This is when all the VISA drama began. He went to his Facebook account and flaunted the passport quote on quote
“Because of my moral values, including the banning of content promoting LGBT and atheists culture in Kenya, someone wrote in a local daily that I will never get a visa to the USA. I not only got it but it came on a diplomatic passport and I didn’t even have to go to the Embassy for biometrics or pay the visa applications fee. It was delivered to my office free of charge thanks to our efficient Ministry of Foreign Affairs and highly courteous US embassy officials. America here we come. To God be the glory,” said Ezekiel Mutua in the post.
This brought a lot of heated conversion among the facebook users and the social media users trolled him but he resorted to insulting them.
In one message, Mutua insulted a friend and asked them to keep off his Facebook posts.
“Dear Mr Lemchi or whatever you call yourself. You have a right to express yourself but when you want to be a complete idiot and insulting please keep it on your wall. This is my space and i write what i want and i owe you no apology. Bloody fool,” the comment reads.
Although Kenyans demanded for the Film Board boss to apologise for the insult, Mutua remained adamant.
One Twitter user said:”EzekielMutua suffers inferiority complex. He is not confident. He feels he didn’t deserve that position. His grammar is terrible.”
Mwanzia D Mwanzia posted: “Your issues of LGBT rights can be addressed in a more mature way, even me I don’t like them but we don’t go yapping about other peoples lives as long as it doesn’t affect others.”
Meshack Mutinda Musyoki: “Diplomacy is not political or religious correctness but rather the willingness to agree to disagree. Live and let live.”
Ezekiel Mutua diplomatic passport recalled
This led to the Immigration department to recall Ezekiel Mutua diplomatic passport, he was asked to immediately surrender his diplomatic passport days after he bragged about it.
The Director general of Immigration department, Gordon Kihalangwa said that Ezekiel Mutua did not qualify to hold a diplomatic passport and was supposed to return the diplomatic passport so that he can be given an ordinary passport, according to the Third schedule of persons entitled to Diplomatic passports, as per the Kenya Subsidiary Legislation of 2012.
He said that Ezekiel Mutua was given the diplomatic passport back in February 2013 when he was in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and he was supposed to return the document as per the policy states upon the completion of duty that qualified one for it.
The constitution says people entitled to the passports include the President and DP, their immediate families and Speakers of Parliament. Senior security officers including the IG, Chief of Defence Forces, KDF Service Commanders,governors, Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice and their immediate families also qualify. In the event the country has a Prime Minister, such a person and his immediate family are also entitled to the document.
Ezekiel Mutua as a moral crusader
Ezekiel Mutua on Coca Cola “Taste The Feeling” commercial
Ezekiel Mutua stated that a Coca Cola “Taste The Feeling” commercial which his organisation had initially approved, violated “family values” and featured “offensive” kissing scenes.
KFCB’s official statement actually quoted Mutua’s Facebook update, where he thanked some friends for bringing the “public outcry” to his attention. “On 23rd March, the KFCB approved our advertisement as it qualified for the ‘Parental Guidance’ (PG) rating in line with the established classification guidelines,” the soft drinks maker said in a statement.
Ezekiel Mutua on sexual adult topics on radio and tv
Ezekiel Mutua announced that Wedding Show Programmes, Marriage Counsellors like Bi Msafari ( Citizen TV ) and those who host such programmes, Maina & Kingangi ( Classic 105 ) will be required to take their adult sexual topics out of the watershed period. He said that we must ensure that content meant for adults is not aired during the watershed period and it was not negotiable. He said he will walk to the studio with police and have the said Bi. Msafari, Maina & Kingangi arrested if they defy the guidelines.
Ezekiel Mutua – Video and film ban
As head of the government agency that regulates all visual content in the country, Ezekiel Mutua is best known for demanding that Youtube take down a music video celebrating gay love. (You tube kept it online but flagged it for “potentially inappropriate” content.) Homosexuality is a criminal offense in Kenya, punishable with up to 14 years in prison. The video was a song by singer Joji Mbaru who is a member of Kenya’s LGBT community
Ezekiel Mutua also banned a film made by the arts collective Nest, Stories of Our Lives, based the Kenya’s LGBT community; a podcast hosted by a lesbian actor and singer duo; and a gay speed-dating event in Nairobi. When Netflix first launched in Kenya, Ezekiel Mutua called it a threat to the country’s “moral values and national security.”
Ezekiel Mutua described atheism as a form of radicalization. “The crusade on moral values is gathering momentum,”
Ezekiel Mutua Photo
Ezekiel Mutua Photo
Ezekiel Mutua video
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