Kiosks demolished in Kisii as county reorganises town

 

Traders in Kisii town were Wednesday counting losses after their kiosks were demolished by the county government.

The devolved unit effected the demolitions as it embarks on reorganising the town.

Those mostly affected are traders on Hema Street where dozens of timber yards erected along the main road were brought down.

This came barely two weeks after the county government demolished several makeshift shops along Kisii Mattress and Aga Khan streets where traders lost property worth millions of shillings.

Coffins stolen

Those affected claimed the county government gave a short notice of 48 hours for them to relocate their belongings. They lamented that people took advantage of the demolitions and stole coffins and timber.

“I had invested about Sh2 million in this timber yard and it was my only source of income. I lost five coffins and timber during the demolition,” said Mr Kennedy Nyakundi. 

Municipality Manager Nahashon Ongeri said the town is congested and that they are in the process of reorganising it.

"The municipal board is reorganising the town in a move aimed at attracting investors. We are not punishing traders, instead we are improving the status of this town,” he said.

Traders have been complaining of problems such uncollected garbage, poor sewage system and poor state of town streets.

Filthy market

Led by Kisii town open market chairman Elijah Ombongi, the traders decried insufficient toilets and poor hygiene.

"We are operating in a filthy market that lacks a drainage system, toilets and clean water,” he said.  

Two years ago, the town was upgraded to a municipality.

The municipal board seeks to regulate refuse collection, solid waste management alongside providing water and sanitation services.

The chairman of vegetable and fruits traders, Mr David Ochako, expressed fears that the ghosts of the old municipality will come back to haunt the people of Kisii County.

“Kisii Municipal Council existed before and it constantly harassed small scale traders and hawkers, making it hard for them to conduct their day to day businesses,” he said.

According to him, small scale traders were not included in the development plan as they had not been allocated a designated zone to conduct their trade.

“Traders who sell their goods on roadsides in the town were not outlined in the plan and they may be forced out of town,” he added.

The town is currently congested with most of the traders doing their businesses on the roadsides.  BY DAILY NATION