Nairobi News

NewsState of roads

WATCH: Governor storms roadblock to free boda boda rider


West Pokot Governor Prof. John Lonyangapuo on Wednesday evening stormed a roadblock along the Kitale-Lodwar highway to free a boda boda rider who had been beaten by police officers.

The rider Leonard Powen, who was ferrying onions from Ortum Market to Kapenguria town, was stopped near Safari Hotel by police officers who harassed and handcuffed him this motorbike.

Earlier during the day, boda boda and PSV operators had clashed with police at Marich on the same route, leading to youths to barricade the road and while burning tyres in protest.

The furious embattled governor removed the roadblock telling the police officers on the road to leave the place.

“We want the Police Commander Mr. Mathew Kuto to remove all illegal road blocks in this area and leave only two at Tartar and Marich. This is a peculiar county. There are more than twenty road blocks in the area. This is not Somalia. How can police make a governor useless in his home ground?” asked the governor.

ONE THOUSAND

“The government is making the police to and youths to suffer because the traffic rules are being enforced badly. The police take one thousand bob from each rider as corruption and vehicles are not coming from Turkana.”

Journalists were also got up in the mess as police officers harassed them for taking photos.

This comes after area leaders led by Kapenguria Member of Parliament Samuel Moroto and area members of County assembly protested over alleged police harassment, brutality and corruption in the ongoing PSV operator’s crackdown in the area.

They  accused police of taking advantage of the crackdown to solicit bribes and harass youth in the area.