A Kenyan man who went to Canada on a visit visa then filed for asylum is set to be deported after his claim was rejected by the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

David Kipkoech Keter, who has been living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, traveled to Canada in 2016 on a visit visa then filed for asylum alleging that he was gender non-conforming and that this had put his life in danger back in Kenya.

However, his application was rejected by the IRCC after a determination was made that Kenya was a safe country for him to return to.

The IRCC also rejected his humanitarian and compassionate applications. Keter however insists that Kenya is not safe for him.

“I don’t know what will happen to my life,” Keter told Canadian media. “I don’t know what will happen to my family.”

“I think persecution is already over there, like, waiting for me.… [I’m] fearing of my life, like, OK, maybe they going to kill me.”

In April, Keter received a letter from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) asking him to obtain travel documents in preparation for deportation, which is scheduled for June 9, 2023.

Reports say that after landing in Canada and filing for his refugee claim, Keter then married a Canadian citizen Kalombe Mukuba who was a single mother of one.  The two recently had a baby together. The baby now holds Canadian citizenship.

To save Keter from his imminent deportation, Mukuba has filed for spousal sponsorship for his permanent residency. She filed the application in August 2022 and is questioning why Keter is being deported before her application is determined.

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In his plead, Keter has said that he has worked hard during his time in Canada, has no criminal record and pays his taxes.

A petition aimed at stopping Keter’s deportation from Canada has so far garnered more than 10,000 signatures.

However, the CBSA has said that “the decision to remove someone from Canada is not taken lightly.”

“There are multiple steps built into the process to ensure procedural fairness and the CBSA only actions a removal order once all legal avenues of recourse have been exhausted,” the agency was quoted in the media.

“The CBSA has a legal obligation to remove all foreign nationals and permanent residents that are inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.”