- The 17-member Committee has 42 days to undertake the task.
- Thugge is also expected to explain the source of any money or consideration paid to Kenyans whose eyes were scanned.
Central Bank Kenya Governor Kamau Thugge and National Intelligence Service Director General Noordin Haji are among the witnesses set to appear before a parliamentary Committee inquiring into the controversial Worldcoin project today.
The Committee chaired by Gabriel Tongoyo is looking into the legal and regulatory compliance of the operations of Worldcoin and its subsidiary partners in Kenya and beyond.
It is also seeking to establish the potential use of the data collected and its safety in the hands of the collector.
They will be grilled on the relationship between the cryptocurrency trade in Kenya and the recent activities of Worldcoin.
Thugge is also expected to explain the source of any money or consideration paid to Kenyans whose eyes were scanned.
Director of National Computer and Cybercrimes Evans Ombati will be the first one to appear before the Committee in the morning.
The 17-member ad hoc Committee, National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula said, has 42 days to undertake the task before reporting back to the House.
Cabinet Secretaries Kindiki Kithure (Interior), Eliud Owalo (ICT), and Susan Nakhumicha (Health) have also been lined up as per the schedule released by the Committee.
Solicitor General Shadrack Mose, Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Mohamed Amin, Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) Director General will also appear this week.
“Our work is cut out and we shall be calling in a number of witnesses including experts to shed light on this matter.
"We have very limited time to ensure that Kenyans get all the answers they deserve, and as the people’s representatives, we shall endeavor to give this inquiry our best shot,” Tongoyo last week.
Worldcoin is a crypto wallet app launched on July 24, 2023.
It uses a combination of cryptocurrency and biometric registration to create a new kind of global identity service.
Worldcoin was co-founded by Open AI CEO Sam Altman.
It aims to create a global financial network and identity by showing proof of personhood.
Currently, it is readily available in cities like Nairobi, Hong Kong, Lisbon, Mexico City, New York, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Singapore and Paris.
Hundreds of Kenyans were seen queuing at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre(KICC) to scan their eyeballs in return for the Worldcoin cryptocurrency tokens valued at about Sh7,700.