Super Metro, a popular matatu operator serving routes within Nairobi and its metropolitan areas, is under renewed scrutiny after another passenger was allegedly thrown out of a moving bus and subsequently run over.
On Tuesday night, the crew of a Super Metro bus operating along Kitengela-Namanga Highway allegedly pushed 25-year-old Joseph Mureithi to his death.
According to his family, the same vehicle ran over him moments after ejecting him before speeding off, leaving him fatally injured by the roadside.
A patrol vehicle from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) pursued the bus and blocked it.
“The detectives impounded the bus, which had the registration number KDK 060H. It was later towed to Athi River Police Station. Two crew members have been arrested as the investigation continues,” a police report reads in part.
According to witnesses, Mureithi, a petrol attendant at a station in Athi River, had just finished his shift and was on his way home when the incident occurred.
They said that he had arrived at a bus stop on the busy Kitengela–Namanga Highway, a few metres from Shalom Hospital, and had boarded the Super Metro bus travelling from Kitengela to Nairobi at around 11 pm.
Some passengers said the bus was overcrowded and that the crew appeared disorderly and confrontational.
Less than a kilometre later, the 25-year-old was allegedly pushed from the moving vehicle.
His family said that Mureithi had recently found work to help pay his mother’s hospital bills, was pronounced dead on arrival at Shalom Hospital.
An autopsy has been scheduled for Thursday, while detectives are appealing for witnesses to come forward with information that could shed light on the circumstances surrounding his death.
Meanwhile, Super Metro said it is still piecing together the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Transport regulators have also indicated that they may take disciplinary action if the company is found to have breached safety standards.
Matatus belonging to Super Metro Sacco parked along Tom Mboya Street in Nairobi on May 28, 2018.
Photo credit: File | Nation
Super Metro is a popular matatu operator serving routes within Nairobi and its metropolitan areas. It has previously faced criticism over alleged safety violations and the conduct of its crew.
The latest incident adds to a series of complaints that have raised questions about the enforcement of traffic regulations and the oversight of public service vehicles.
Last year, a crew from one of their buses were arrested and is now facing prosecution and long jail terms for pushing a passenger out of a moving bus to his death.
The passenger, Gilbert Thuo, was pushed out at Kahawa area last March by the bus crew. He did not have Sh30 to top up the Sh50 he had paid as his fare to Thika town. The conductor rejected Thuo’s plea that he had no more money to add.
The incident comes a month after the owner of another Super Metro bus and the Sacco’s director were ordered by a court to pay a passenger, Wairimu Muthoni Wachira, Sh420,000 as compensation for assault by the matatu crew in August 2018.
Ms Wachira’s differences with the crew arose when the bus changed course at Ngara area in Nairobi and headed towards Thika. When boarding, she believed it was heading to Westlands.
Upon changing route, Ms Wachira demanded to alight and the conductor refused to give her back the balance after paying Sh1,000. The driver stopped the bus, went to the passenger cabin and joined the conductor in pushing Ms Wachira out, causing her to fall outside the bus. They followed her outside and slapped her.
The two then threw her belongings to her as they sped off. On checking, she found that the Sh80,000 she had was missing. She also realised that a gold pendant worth Sh40,000 was missing.
“Considering the indignity the passenger was subjected to, being thrown forcefully from the bus, losing her property, and being repeatedly slapped in public until she bled; It is my considered view that compensation to the tune of Sh420,000 is fair and reasonable. The same is apportioned equally between the Director Super Metro Sacco and the owner of the bus, Ezekiel Njuguna, so that each shall pay Sh210,000 to Ms Wachira,” said Justice Lawrence Mugambi in the judgment.
Ms Wachira had sought Sh10 million in general damages from Super Metro for the emotional and psychological pain and suffering caused by the crew.
