Following the official commencement of the dusk-to-dawn curfew, members of the public, especially those inhabiting major towns around the country may lack some services at their local shops.
Jared Nyamari, a trader in Kangemi, Nairobi told Kenyans.co.ke on Saturday, March 28, 2020, that the curfew order had greatly impacted his business less than a day into implementation.
The trader informed that transporters of agro products from Nairobi's feeder counties had chosen to stay home in the wake of the directive.
"Lorries that bring goods from Kisii are all in parking. No one wants to get on the wrong side of the law, and you know most of them (transporters) travel upcountry during the day and are back during the night,
"So we have to wake up sometimes at night or very early in the morning to get these products. Now that they have stopped, I only have a stock that will last maybe till tomorrow and a little till Monday, but after that, I don't have anything to sell, and I don't know how we will survive with this curfew," Nyamari stated.
Yet another trader who spoke to Kenyans.co.ke informed that Muthurwa and Gikomba markets in Nairobi were deserted on Saturday morning and lacked goods.
This situation, posing a threat to the livelihoods of members of the public dependant on buying foods on a daily basis, and those making a living from it.
Nyamari stated that the warning by Inspector General Hillary Mutyambai to arrest and impound public service vehicles defying the curfew order was a challenge to the traders.
"Some of us just make orders from where we get our products, we don't have to go there. They (suppliers) have to wait for lorries and buses travelling at night, load the goods and I just have to wait for them here. Now with the order, that cannot happen," Nyamari stated.
It is only logical that these traders get their products early in the morning, so they are able to have their businesses up and running in the course of the day, however, they risk closure and understocking.
He called upon the government to consider the distribution of foods, noting that Nairobi county is dependant on other counties for the agricultural products consumed.
While issuing a presser at Afya House on Friday, March 27, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe stated that the curfew was indefinite, further raising concerns of how such services will survive during the period.
Other entrepreneurs plying their trade in commodities such as bread, packaged milk, and other daily essentials, have raised concerns on the impact on their businesses.
Several traders in the sector have companies located at one point but cover a larger distribution area. A dusk to dawn curfew will effectively cut back on the area they serve, thus locking a section of Kenyans out of provision.
