Jaguar quick off the blocks to raise piracy issue in Kenyan Parliament

The Starehe constituency MP, whose stage name is Jaguar, told the National Assembly that the only way Kenyan artists could make a living from music was if the government dealt with the problem of piracy. Kenyan musicians, much like their colleagues in the rest of Africa, earn a living by performing at live events, many of them corporate, and seldom from album sales.

“It is only in Kenya that you find a musician releasing a song during the day and by the evening the song has already been pirated and people are downloading it for free or buying it on a CD,” Kanyi said in Parliament last week.

Piracy in Kenya is a criminal offence that carries a fine of $8 000 or a maximum of 10 years imprisonment. KECEBO, which partners with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Anti-Counterfeit Agency (ACA), employs the Anti-Piracy Security Device (APSD), a tamper-proof barcode and hologram sticker that is placed on all copies of copyrighted works such as CDs, DVDs and VCDs.

But piracy in the East African nation is rife despite the regulatory efforts KECEBO has put in place.

“We need to deal with this issue as soon as possible because it is one of the many avenues that young people can use to earn a living,” Kanyi told National Assembly speaker Justin Muturi.  

“During my campaign period I promised the youth from my constituency [in Nairobi County] that I would create employment. I would therefore like to start with an area I am familiar with, which is music.”

Kanyi was elected into Parliament during the Kenyan general elections in August. He told Music In Africa that on his agenda was a plan to forge a close working relationship with royalty collective management organisations (CMOs) in the country. "I am very much willing to work with the CMOs to ensure that musicians get all their royalties and on time," Kanyi said.