The police crackdown on hawkers and boda boda riders in Nairobi’s CBD started yesterday. It immediately ran into trouble after City Hall refused to pay Sh6.3 million for officers’ meals, allowances and fuel.
Governor Mike Sonko declined a request by county commissioner Amos Mariba to facilitate officers to flush out the groups from downtown.
It was not known how the refusal will affect the operation.
Many vendors and riders along key streets in the CBD were arrested yesterday. Some were charged at City Hall Court while others who could not pay the fines, spent the night at the Central Police Station.
Police patrolled the downtownin two lorries. Hawkers operating along Kirinyaga Road, River Road and Tom Mboya Street were the most affected. The operation is scheduled to take 14 days.
“We have arrested many [hawkers and boda bodas], but I cannot confirm the exact number,” Central police station OCPD Robison Thuku said.
On Wednesday Mariba had written to the governor requesting Sh6,307,000 for the officers’ allowances, meals and fueling of five lorries and cruisers.
“In order to make it successful and humane, it was agreed officers will arrive early morning. They will require transport and meals,” the letter reads.
Exactly. But the truth is that the chaos and confusion is their daily bonus. They collect from hawkers and extort those they arrest, impound matatus and beat up touts, so they’re asking Sonko to pay compensation.
It’s going to be hard, halafu Sonko the populist Oboho will be reversing himself if his voter base complains.
it’s sad bana. They voted for Sonko knowing ni “mtetezi wa wanyonge” Kwanza I remember how after Sonko won they invaded every street in the CBD and made them their own, sasa wameonyeshwa kidole cha kati.
But seriously, we need order in the CBD, the hawkers and matatus menace needs to be tamed. Am happy nowadays I don’t go to the CBD often.
That right there is the problem. There were also non-hawkers, shopkeepers and common pedestrians in those voting booths. We cannot demand a clean and safe Nairobi yet treat it like a free-for-all place.
Arrest, brutality and the usual extortion must stop, but there must be a solution to the clogged pavements, litter and wild passenger pick-ups.
True. I feel sorry for the hawkers and boda-boda operators, but that does not mean that we should have a free-for-all where anything goes - just because they voted in the governor. What we need to have is a structured way of accommodating these our brothers and sisters - that gives them a right to work, and an obligation to pay taxes. After all, even New York, Tokyo, Toronto, Shanghai and London have street vendors.
Every city worth it’s name has street-based business that is strictly controlled. Right now Nairobi has more vendors per street than the number of legit businesses.