Investigative Report By Leo Odera Omolo In Awendo Town.
The traffic police is reported to have gone high technique in a small farming town of Awendo district where they have now devised new oblique technique of using a civilian as a conduit in collection of o bribe money on their behalf from motorists and motorbike taxis.
And the Matatu tax owners are now up in arms threatening to withdraw their vehicles from the roads in Awendo and its environs.
Matatu owners operating passengers vehicles plying the roads to Mariwa, Ranen, Maroo, Uriri,and other outlets. Each of the operators is required to pay Kshs 100, and there are close to 100 such vehicles plus taxis. This means that the police are minting close to Kshs 10,000 on every market day under this scheme of illegal levies and bribery..
It is being alleged that the police areb using one civilian man whose name was only given as Oyombe who is collecting money from the motorist on their behalf.The man is said to walks with a list of all the vehicles operating in Awendo and its environs. Failure to pay this man couild end up in ones vehicle being towed away by police, and such vehicle could only be released on a payment of Kshs 3000.
The Matatu operators and taxi cabs in Awendo town have now appealed to the relevant authorities to come to their rescue and investigate as to whose interests is this civilian serves.
The spokesman of the Awendo Matatu operators, who pleaded with this reporter that his name should remain in total anonymity said the situation is increasingly becoming more pathetic, because the Matatu men are not making much money on these routes, and whatever they earn in a day is all going to the police through their conduit Oyombe.
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‘We sre law abiding and loyal citins of this country., and as such must not be subjected to such draconian kind of police treatment.. We are paying out taxes and even taxes for our vehicles, but this kind of harassment is becoming too much for us. We need someone somewhere to come out and intervene,” said the Matatu spokesman.
They said the police posted to man the routes are no longer asking for ther bribe as they get their cut from the illegal collection of bribery by their civilian power brokers. The reason why we believe this man is working for the police is that when one of us refused to pay the daily levy of 100/= the man’s vehicle is seized and impounded within hours, and to have such a vehicle released the owner is required to part with much heavier penalty of Kshs 3000/- .
One Matatu operator who had suffered under this scheme said Kenyan policemen are well paid to protect b thre citizens. But in Awendo, they are paid by the government to fleece poor Matatu operator of their hard earned money.
Unless someone come to our assistance, we shall have no other alternative, but to take our vehicle out of the road and paralyzed the transport system of this busy farming town of Awendo, said one of the operators.
Ends
Leooderaomolo@yahoo.com
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Date: Sun, 15 Mar 2009 03:44:45 -0700 [05:44:45 AM CDT]
From: Leo Odera Omolo
Subject: POLICE COMMISSIONER AND KACC ASKED TO INTERVENE TO END MASSIVE CORRUPTION BY POLICE IN AWENDO TOWN AS MATATU TAXIS ISSUE A THREAT TO DOWN THEIR TOOLS.