Hawker Omollo laments county harassment for political reasons.

Zablon Omollo sits on a stone at the site he used to earn a living, clueless and dejected after his stock was impounded by county government askaris.

A renowned Thika hawker is lamenting over endless harassment by county government askaris for what he perceives to be political victimisation.

Zablon Omollo, who in the last General Elections vied for the Thika Township Ward as an independent candidate after losing in the Jubilee Party primaries, says that over the last one month his life has been hell following frequent raids by the county reinforcement officers on his business.

“For the last one month, they have raided my merchandise thrice, two of which were done last week. It seems someone is behind these raids as I am the only target. No one else is being forced to close down apart from me,” he said.

He claims that some of his merchandise is still in the custody of the county government after they were confiscated for ‘illegally hawking within an unauthorised area’. He adds that his efforts to reclaim them through the right channels have been frustrated by the authorities at the county government whom he claims are ‘working as per orders from above’.

“These askaris come here on daily and each time warning me that if I don’t close down they will impound my stock or arrest me for illegal hawking. At times either during or after the raid, they are seen communicating with somebody over the phone, raising questions as from whom these are coming from and why only me,” he laments.

He says that his attempts to seek redress from the county leadership is being frustrated as he is not allowed to speak to any of the senior officers.

Omollo operates inside Mama Ngina Gardens where he sells various items including ties, socks and umbrellas. He also operates a weighing machines (Pima Weight) which he charges a small fee for clients who wish to know their body mass.