Acceptance for hawkers is a hard thing to come by. They create chaos on our streets, always trying to dodge their wares as we walk by. Making our streets a living hell, walking on them like a trapeze artist. Also the constant running battles they have between police and the council askaris. Drama upon drama.
But I will not begrudge hawkers is their endurance, spirit, and thrift. They are a hard-working bunch, trying to make a living in this very untenable and unforgiving job market. The only question is how can we as the people who walk the streets of Nairobi co-exist with them peacefully. That is the question new Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko is going to deal with.He has allowed hawkers to move back to the streets of Nairobi city temporarily while his deputy Polycarp Igathe finds a permanent landing spot for them.
The decision was reached after a meeting with the Nairobi Hawkers Association at city hall. He also said the hawkers will now be referred to as small-scale traders. He said the administration was trying to identify streets to send hawkers to as it looked for areas to set up stalls. He said on one of his social media pages:
” We will not chase you from the city centre.. but we will look for places to take you first. This is where my votes came from. I started fighting for hawkers when I was Makadara MP. I will not change now I am governor.”
I like how the new governor is working. I hope that we get an amicable solution for both the “small scale trader” and the coomon mwananchi who walks on the streets.
