Kenya’s President William Ruto has vowed to fully empower online scam syndicates in Mulot, Bomet County.
Mulot villages in Bomet County have gained notoriety in the recent past as an unlikely hotbed of mobile money fraud and home for scammers.
For instance, In March 2022, police officers impounded more than 2,000 sim cards and 15 mobile phones in Mulot.
Further, the officers last month arrested the mastermind behind the disappearance of more than KSh 45 million from bank accounts belonging to unsuspecting Kenyans.
But speaking during an interdenominational church service at Bomet Green Stadium, President Ruto said his Kenya Kwanza government will build a software factory (Information, Communication and Technology center) in the county.
The Head of State said Mulot hackers are very sharp and that with the factory set up, the government will tap their skills into use instead of using their skills for criminal activities.
This, the Head of State said will tame online fraud not only in Rift Valley but also across the country.
“Tuko na watu wenye akili mingi hapa wanatumika vibaya. Wale watu wa Mulot pale kwa kona. Sasa tunataka kutengeneza hapa factory, badala ya kufanya mambo hiyo, wafanye mambo mzuri,” the president said.
Loosely translated to: “We have a lot of tech-savvy minds here who are being misused, they are found in Mulot. We as a government wants to build a factory here so that they can work there and avoid crime.”
Earlier a section of Rift Valley leaders led by Kericho senator Aaron Cheruiyot had asked president William Ruto to build an ICT center in the county following the arrest of David Mutai, a SIM swap suspect.
“The Silicon Savannah in Kenya and the East African region at large where you will find IT wizards is in Bomet County. They are found in a place called Mulot. They are engaging in fraud due to unemployment. In the budget, please allocate them KSh 1 billion,” Cheruiyot pleaded.
