Sakaja: No more hawkers on Nairobi CBD pavements

The Nairobi County government has come up with new rules to tame hawkers from invading pavements within the CBD.

This was announced by Governor Johnson Sakaja during a consultative meeting with the inspectors manning the CBD and representatives of the hawkers.

In his directive, the governor said his decision is aimed at restoring sanity and dignity to the CBD.

"There will be no hawking on the streets. In fact, I'm enforcing it from tomorrow (Thursday) morning, even around the bus station, I won't allow it," Sakaja said.

In his orders, the governor said the move was not only for the safety of hawkers who risk their lives selling their wares on the roads, but also to allow motorists to move around with ease.

He said more vehicles will have space to park as some hawkers have been occupying parking spaces with the CBD.

In a stern warning to his inspectorate officers, the governor said that fairness must be exercised in his orders and implementation must be taken with a lot of seriousness.

The governor also commended his officers for the good work they have done since he took office, adding that the tainted image of the City Inspectorate has been restored.

The Governor has also directed the chief officer in charge of security, Anthony Kimani, to ensure that all officers are in uniform.

"All our officers must be in uniform. I don't want anybody to work out of uniform unless they are part of our plain clothes team".