Businesses in Kilgoris came to a standstill on Thursday, May 1, after boda boda operators took to the streets to protest the death of their colleague, who was allegedly run over by a General Service Unit (GSU) officer.
Tension gripped the area as enraged boda boda operators lit fires and barricaded the road, halting all movement as they fiercely demanded justice for their colleague.
According to the boda boda operators, the GSU officer ran over the rider and then allegedly reversed to finish him off. The incident happened on the Kilgoris-Nyanguso road.
"Yesterday, one of us was hit here by a cruiser belonging to the GSU. The vehicle knocked him then reversed to finish him off. The officer then sped off...," Bahati Kagia, one of the operators, revealed.
According to the boda boda operators, this was the third incident involving the officers, with most cases being swept under the rug because the perpetrators were police.
"When a boda boda operator makes a small mistake like brushing someone's car, it becomes a police case, but when a government vehicle runs over someone, the cases are ignored and shoved away," Kelvin Leiyan, another operator, decried.
"For how long will we live like this? This is the third case. We cannot continue like this," Leiyan continued.
Police were forced to intervene and disperse the irate crowd; however, with emotions running high, the protestors vowed not to relent until justice was served.
Cases of government vehicles running over people and killing them have been on the rise in Kenya.
In March, two incidents involving government vehicles sent shockwaves among Kenyans. In Molo, a police vehicle ran over a Form Three student, who had allegedly been shot during protests near a police station in the area.
In the same month, a government vehicle in President William Ruto’s motorcade hit and killed a 79-year-old British national along Ngong Road near Adams Arcade.
The victim was crossing the road when he was hit by one of the speeding vehicles.
