Githima residents protest over bad roads, vow not to pay county cess.
Transport was paralysed in Githima area of Gatuanyaga Ward
Kiambu after hundreds of locals barricaded the road due to the deplorable state
of their roads.
The residents chanted
slogans against the Kiambu County Government and demanded immediate
rehabilitation of the stretch from Komo area to Muguga along the Thika-Garissa
Highway as well as the Githima-Makongeni road which is now impassible due to the current rains.
They had lit
bonfires along the road, completely obstructing hundreds of trucks ferrying
construction stones from the multiple quarries in the area for more than four
hours.
Those who spoke to the
press expressed their disappointment over what they described as empty
assurances by the county government for several years. They
said that the roads had been made worse by heavy rains that have been pounding
the area vowing not to pay county cess as it served no purpose to them.
“We are counting
millions in terms of losses occasioned by the wear and tear of our vehicles. It
is now almost impossible to transport out products in certain sections of these
roads. Our trucks and vehicles get stuck in the mud and we can no longer handle
the ballooning maintenance cost of our vehicles,” said one truck driver.
David Njoroge, a
resident of the area noted that more than 500 hundred lorries use the road daily
to ferry stones, earning the County Government of Kiambu collects more than
shillings 500,000 per day which was enough to make the road an all-weather
road.
“In a day, over 500
lorries ferry the stones from these quarries and pay a lot of money. Why aren't
these funds not being used to repair these roads? We shall not pay further dues
until the roads are repaired, said Njoroge.
The residents accused
the county government of arresting a quarry owner who attempted to repair the
road, saying that he was not mandated to do so.
“Recently, Kiambu
county officials arrested one of the quarry owners for attempting to repair a
section of the road and charged him for repairing it without their consent,”
said Njoroge.
The residents added
that during the dry season, the road became very dusty with the situation worsening
when it rains because sections of the road ended up being impassable. They
accused the county government of laxity in addressing their plight, saying
despite collecting millions of shillings from them in levies, the county had
blatantly refused to repair the roads.
“It is very clear
that the county government does care about us. So far, two investors have
been arrested for filling potholes in this area. If they (county government)
have been unable to repair these roads, we have the capacity to do so. We
should be allowed to do it without intimidation. We are fed up with this cycle
of impunity,” said Anthony Ndachi.
No comments: