Boda boda riders in Kerugoya have engaged police officers in running battles on Thursday afternoon, March 10, 2022.
The police were forced to fire in the sky and hurl tear gas canisters at the irate boda boda riders who had stormed Kerugoya Police Station in protest.
The protests erupted after police launched a crackdown on the operators following a directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Dickson Wangechi a boda boda rider in Kerugoya told Nairobileo.co.ke that police had confiscated over 100 motorcycles by mid-morning on Thursday alone.
Video| Courtesy| Citizen Digital|
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Police lob teargas to disperse boda boda operators who stormed Kerugoya police station to protest ongoing nationwide crackdown pic.twitter.com/pgbHH9TQGc
— Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) March 10, 2022
He further revealed that the officers moved to towns around Kerugoya including Mukinduri, Mutitu, inspecting boda boda registration.
"Today alone, they have arrested over 100 motorbikes, loaded them in a lorry and took them to the station.
"My fellow riders are angered by the directive, they have gone to the police station to surrender the motorcycles they have, even the registered ones, in protest," he said.
He noted that police should be professional in their undertaking and avoid harassing riders.
"Many people depend on these boda bodas for a living, if they are taken away, many of us will suffer," Dickson added.
The nationwide crackdown on boda bodas was occasioned by an incident where riders assaulted a female motorist along Wangari Maathai Road in Nairobi on Friday, March 4.
The incident irked members of the public and leaders alike who took to various platforms to condemn the act.
Police have since arrested 16 persons in connection to the assault. The suspects were arraigned at the Milimani Law Courts on Thursday.
They will be held at the Gigiri Police Station for 15 days as police conduct investigations into the matter.
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