By Moses Mwaura.
It has now been established a cartel of corrupt traffic police officers are frustrating plans by Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko to decongest the city’s central Business District.
According to complaints filed before the Nairobi County Government, the traffic police officers based in the CBD along Moi Avenue and Tom Mboya streets are hindering smooth flow of traffic due their demands to be given a bribe of Sh500 by every matatu.
The matatu operators have also accused the police of allowing the matatus to double park in order for them to extort from the matatu crew every morning and evening.
Since 2004 when the late Transport Minister John Michuki introduced the infamous ‘Michuki Rules’ which brought sanity in the sector, no leader has tamed the matatus which have been accused of being behind city’s chaotic traffic. But Sonko has now taken the bull by the horns and he has vowed to fix the decongestion in the CBD by reforming the matatu sector.
Sonko suspended his directive to ban Matatus from parking in the CBD for 30 days to allow the matatu operators to self-regulate and ensure smooth flow of traffic and decongest the city’s CBD.
“All of us, including the larger matatu sector, are in agreement that the current chaotic situation is neither good for the public nor for those who have invested in the industry,” said the governor.
“Decongesting Nairobi will translate to more revenues for the matatu sector, while ensuring our residents move faster and more freely, to build our economy,” he added when he suspended the CDB directive to matatus.
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