MAJOR ROAD DISASTER IS ON THE OFFING ON KISUMU-KISII-MIGORI ROAD AS TRAFFIC POLICEMEN RESORT TO RAMPANT BRIBERY INSTEAD OF INFORCING TRAFFIC RULES ON OVERLOADING AND EXCESSES.

Investigative Report By Leo Odera Omolo

MEMBERS of the public traveling in passenger vehicle on the main Kisumu-Oyugis-Kisii and Migori may soon experience a major road disaster of devastative magnitude.

The disaster is in the waiting, and will occur very soon, but with devastating result of injuries and deaths.

This is due to the laxity attitude on the part of dozens of traffic police officers posted to enforce the traffic laws on this particular route. Instead of strictly enforcing the traffic laws and rules, the policemen have resorted to massive corruption vices with impunity.

Passenger vehicle operating on this section of the road are exempted from other traffic offences such as overloading, carrying excess passengers and even at times conveying illicit “Chang’aa” drinks and other hard drugs like cannabis sativa, commonly known as “Bhang” in their bouts.

Most buses plying on this route always carries passengers in excess of their regulated carrying capacities, but in full views of the dozens of policemen manning this section of the road.

Early this week, this writer had a harrowing experience, and witnessed the excess of corruption vices on this section of the road.

The writer was part of the dozen or so passengers who boarded a bus which belonging to Nyaugenya Bus Company. The boarding point was at Awendo Bus Station in Rongo district. The bus was destined for Usenge in Boondo via Kisumu City, and the boarding time for the already overcrowded bus was at 11.45 a.m.

At the Awendo Bus Standa, more passengers were without seats, and their numbers had already swollen to outnumber those who were seatedf. The bus is licensed to carry on ly 62 passngers, but it had close to 100 passengers on board when it left Awendo Bus Terminal. Protesting passengers were calmed with the promised that more passengers would be alighting at REanen and Rongo bus stations. But nothing like this happened.

Instead more passengers came on board at Ranen, Rakwaro and nRongo, and at the time the vehicle let Rongo Bus Stand it had close to 120 people aboard. This figure is about the double of its regulated carrying capacity.

The vehicle pulled up at the Daraja Mbili junction of Kisumu-Kisii-Migori road. Here close to ten gunny bags of maize destined for Usenge were loaded on despite the fact that it was already overloaded and overcrowded. The situation remained the same during the duration of the trip. But the worse came when the bus stoipped at the Sondu Market and close to 12 bags of maize and bunches of Bananas destined for Usenge were further loaded on to its carriers..On reaching a few yards from the Ahero-Kericho junction, therte was a defeating sound of explosion. One of the vehicles rear tyre exploded. It was immediately replaced by a spare wheel, which had less pressure, and the vehicle moved on towards Kisumu, though wobbling and appeared to be crippled by heavy loads of excess passengers and cargoes.

Upon reaching Migingo Girls Secondary School ’s signpost, the second explosion of the rear tyre occurred cause a big screams by passengers, but this time around there was no spare tyre and the driver decided to continue with the journey on towards Kisumu with the wobbling bus. Some passengers got scared and came out in protest.

But the most disturbing thing occurred. This particular bus had passed road blocks and police check-points at Sony Sugar junction, Kanga-Mi9t junction, Rongo, Tabala junction at Nyachenge, Gensonso, Daraja Mbili, NByamataro, Oyugis, Kabondo Trading Centre, Othoro Market, Chabera and the major road block at the Kericho-Kisumu junction inside Sondu market.

In all these road blocks and police check-points and to the disappointment of the overcrowded passengers, not even one single policeman peeped his eyes to see what was happening inside the vehicle. Instead the crews came out flashing 100 currency note, which the policemen religiously received and waved it on to continue with its journey.

Had the tyre bursts occurred on the Kisii side of the route, which is full of hills and slopes, it could have been a different story altogether. But there as only the lady luck that the tyres got burst while the vehicle was cruising on the Kano plains.

The passengers lives were put to high risks of suffocating, and many vomited senselessly on their fellow passengers causing big commotion inside the vehicle due to lack of fresh breathing airs.

The Commissioner of Police Maj-General Hussein Ali and the hard working Nyanza PPO Antony Kibuchi must consider their good work being betrayed by these unpatriotic traffic officers who instead of conducting thorough checks on those eroding traffic rules only goes out for collections. Unless these shameful vice are practiced with the consent of their bosses, there is a need for Mr. Kibuchi to overhaul the entire traffic section of police in Nyanza.

This is the only sensible course of action to avert the impending major disaster from occurring on this particular route. Let these corrupted officer be redeployed on other assignment to fight crimes in towns like Kisii, Migori, Oyugis and Kisumu which are on the alarming increases instead of them being wasted on the roads.

And if this is laxity is not enough, there are close to four police check-points between Kisumu and Ahero town, which hardly 20 kilometers apart. These police men and women are also demanding for bribe money with menaces with impunity. Drivers who could not oblige had their vehicles detained by the roads for a long time before being allowed to proceed on, but with a stern warning.

The situation is not only pathetic, but shameful in that this particular road is frequently used by foreigners from the neighbouring countries like Tanzania and Uganda who on occasion have come across our policemen accepting bribe money by the roadside.

The policemen are so brave that they are no longer bothered of being seen by passengers, and care very little about who is on board of the vehicle and the repercussion of their actions. Kenya is getting adverse publicity in its immediate neighboiuring states as the result of the unpatriotic behaviours of its traffic policemen.

On this particular date, a woman who had several fife litres containers full of “Chang’aa had boarded the bus at a spot between Bishop Otunga High School and Mosocho Market. The lucky lady had her cc ago of “Chang’aa concealed inside a bag containing several tins of maize. She alighted outside Oyugis town, just a few yards from the police road block and went away Scots-free.

This is due to lack of insp0ections of luggages and goods as well as loads of cargo carried aboard the bus. Instead of three hours and due toi tyre bursts, it took the vehicle five hours to reach Kisumu at 5.p.m. a distance of 100 miles, which usually takes only three hours.

Can the PPO Nyanza look into the matter with uttermost urgency?

Ends

leooderaomolo@yahoo.com

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Date: Thu, 1 Jan 2009 02:32:00 -0800 [04:32:00 AM CST]
From: Leo Odera Omolo
Subject: nyanza traffic police officer are fleecing motorists but no enforcing rules