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Kidero’s city is a mountain of garbage and lawlessness


Nairobi residents are increasingly frustrated by the poor services by the county government. There is a near total collapse of basic services. In the last one month, residents of Kasarani, Eastleigh and Baraka have protested.

Yet the auditor-general revealed that the county collected Sh5.5 billion in revenue last year but failed to bank some Sh252 million for mysterious reasons.

An eleventh hour attempt to spruce up the city before US President Barack Obama’s visit concentrated on areas where the American president was expected to pass.

After the visit, some flower pots were taken away or uprooted along Uhuru Highway.

The Central Business District is choking under hawkers, boda boda, street families, taxis and matatus.

Matatus, notorious for flouting rules, are increasingly getting bolder, picking up and dropping passengers at undesignated areas. Taxis and boda boda have turned almost every parking slot into a rank. New bus stops crop up daily.

Moi Avenue, Tom Mboya Street and Ronald Ngala Street are chaotic during the rush hours, with pedestrians, street families, hawkers and beggars.

Businesses are now accusing Governor Evans Kidero of making empty promises.

“There is a lot of talk but nothing is happening as the county government is only interested in collecting revenue,” said David Gachuru, the chairman of Nairobi City County Business Association.

MOUNDS OF GARBAGE

Eastlands too is chocking under piles of garbage. This is despite zoning which lumped city estates for easier garbage collection.

Along Juja Road, pile upon pile of garbage dot the entire stretch of the road from Pangani to Dandora. In some areas, mounds of garbage have spilled on to the road.

A road in Dandora phase 4 has been blocked by garbage. Some garbage trucks that ought to dump at the land fill there offload on the road with impunity.

Along the Thika Super Highway, especially in Githura, garbage on the road hasn’t been collected for weeks. Dagoretti too has mounds of garbage near schools that has not been collected for months. On Jogoo Road, the story is the same.

Trader Philip Musyoka says: “We pay Sh50 every day to the county government to run out small businesses but we are not getting services.”

Called by Sunday Nation to explain the ugly condition of the county, Dr Kidero refused to comment, only saying the issues were being addressed.

Senator Mike Sonko says all these is due to loss of control and a weakness in planning by the county government.

“People are throwing garbage and flouting rules because the county government has made it appear normal because it has shown that it doesn’t care. It is like no one is in control,” he said.