THE POLICE COMMISSIONER SHOULD POST A TEAM OF INVESTIGATORS TO NYANZA PROVINCE TO STAMP OUT MASSIVE CORRUPTION BY TRAFFIC POLICE

  By Special Correspondent in Migori
  Leo Odera Omolo
  KISUMU
  9th December, 2006
 
  Corruption by Traffic Police is no longer a secret business, but an open
exercise like the collection of government taxes.
 
  In certain routes, Matatu passenger vehicles are no longer flagged down to
stop by policemen manning the roadblocks. It has become the normal routine  for the motorist to stop by themselves and produce the money and continue with their journey.
 
  The most affected are interland roads traversing markets and trading centers
which are located off the main tarmac road.
 
  In small, but busy road linking Awendo Town and Rapogi market, the practice is so rampant and shamelessly executed with impunity by policemen from Awendo Police Station. They have made it a daily occurrence by parking their car with private registration number plate at the junction of SONYSUGAR factory, Owiro Akoko Ranjira  Girls Secondary   School and Awendo Market. They have turned this point to be an illegal tax collection point.
 
  These policemen don't even carry physical check on defective vehicles or
un-roadworthy vehicles, road licenses, worn out tyres, defective traffic lights
or unlicensed drivers. They just sit down and wait to collect their 50/= or
100/= normal dues from each car.
 
  Matatu drivers ferrying passengers from Rapogi to Oria markets and to the main Awendo market are required to part with 50/= or 100/=. The officers manning this section of the road only sit on the bonnet of their car while reading daily newspapers. As soon as the Matatu pulls up, the driver stops and walks to the place where the officers are sitting and relaxing with their copies of the local dailies. The driver then produces the money in full view of the passengers
sitting in the vehicle. What a shameful act!!
 
  This busy road which at times is used by foreigners from the neighbouring
countries like Uganda and Tanzania whose children are learning at the famous St. Theresa's  Rapogi Girls Boarding School where a large number of Tanzanian and Ugandan pupils are some of the boarders. The same route is also leading to St.Joseph Rapogi secondary Schools, Rapogi RCM Mission and onward to Rapedhi and Karungu Bay in Ndhiwa and Nyatike respectively.
 
  It is a murrum road, but  busy and overcrowded by matatus.  Close to 100
matatus operate on this route on daily basis. On market days in Awendo town
which falls on Monday and Friday, the policemen are said to be minting a lot of
money in excess of 5000/- or more in one day. Tuesday is another busy cattle
market day at Awendo when business of massive bribery goes on as usual.
 
  Drivers who refuse to comply with the massive bribery requirement or anyone
who fails to stop at the spot is in for big trouble. The next trip he would be
stopped and served with a police bond which requires him to appear before the
court for a trumped up traffic offence charges. But the same bonds are usually
cancelled within hours after the victim eventually produces 500/- in bribe!!
 
  One of the policemen whose nick name is only known as ''Omwami'' is said to be too notorious and his lust for money has sent many businessmen and traders
involved in matatu operation within Awendo and its environs out of the road.
These people abandoned the trade taking into account the cost of fuel and the
size of money they pay in bribes.
 
 
  The police commissioner Maj. General Hussein Ali, the Nyanza P.P.O. Grace
Kaindi and the Migori OCPD must come out to the rescue of the suffering public by stopping this unbecoming corruptive behaviour of Awendo policemen. They  need to send out a team of competent undercover investigators in an operations to unearth what is going on on this particular route and other smaller roads leading out of the market places which are used by matatu operators.
 
  There is also the need to reduce the number of road blocks on this route.
There is a police check, which is constantly in place on the Awendo - Rapogi
road. And there is a road block outside the gate of SONYSUGAR junction. Another road block is always erected at Ranen Market only about 5 kilometres away from Awendo  Town. This translates that within ten miles there are as many as 4 road blocks between Awendo and Rongo Town. A thorough check by this correspondent revealed that no motorist be it a matatu or private cars are booked for any traffic offence. These road blocks are only serving as ''collection spots'' where bus and matatu conductors part with money. The distance between Awendo and Rongo is less than 10 miles.
 
  It should be good if the Police Commissioner could deploy these gentlemen on crime controlling operations instead of heaping a large number of idle policemen on the road mainly for the purpose of harassing and fleecing the public of their money. The rate of corruption by police traffic manning roads in Nyanza Province is the highest.
 
  In other places, the officer takes bribes, but the exercise is executed in
secret and not in full view of the passengers or members of the public sitting
in the vehicle. In the Awendo case the policemen do not even bother  to check
what kind of characters are sitting in the matatus to avoid being reported to
their bosses. It is just a matter of routine.
 
  Some of the traffic policemen in this area have grown to be too rich with ill
- gotten money. On the same Awendo - Rapogi route, racketeers smuggling the illicit ''Chang'aa'' drinks in plastic containers are at time packed on the
matatus, but the policemen are not bothered to check on them. They care very
little about the trafficking of ''Chang'aa and bhang on the route so long as they are paid their dues.
 
  Interviewed matatu drivers and conductors admitted that they are forced to
voluntarily surrender their hard earned money because failing to comply with the rule of bribery would send one out of business. It is further being alleged that one or two wealthy matatu operators on this route at times do collaborate with these corrupt and unpatriotic policemen to undercut poor matatu operators and send them out of the route. The practices is to make things difficult for them
to operate and at the same time fulfill the policemen demand. The alleged
wealthy matatus operators are allegedly paying the policemen protection fees to
chase away their competitors on the road.
 
  The situation is so pathetic and calls for urgent action. The commissioner of
Police should work in collaboration with the team of investigators from the
Kenya Anti - Corruption Commission in order to stamp out this shameful act,
which is portraying Kenya as a country where open bribery is the order of the day.
 
  The action by these unpatriotic policemen is also denting the image and
reputation of the Narc Government and must be discouraged. There is no point or any good reason why the Awendo's OCS should keep the same character of policemen manning the same road for too long without changing them at the regular intervals.
 
  Many users of these roads now believe that the corruptive practices of these
unpatriotic policemen is not strange phenomenon to their bosses as they execute their heinous action with confidence and impurity showing no signs of fears of being netted by any authority.
 
  There is an urgent need for someone somewhere to move to the field and carry out a thorough checks on the excesses and corruptive actions of traffic
policemen in Nyanza. It has reached a very dangerous proportion and it is time
for the hardworking Maj. General Ali to crack the whip on his corrupt boys.
 
  ENDS.
  leooderaomolo@yahoo.com
 
The writer is LUOCOME REPORTER based in Kisumu. We urge all LUOCOME members with pressing issues pertaining to media and press releases to kindly contact him from any where in world. He will assist you to get true picture of your Village Developement.
LUOCOME-MEDIA