A police officer manning the Kenya-Tanzania border was captured on camera receiving bribes from a number of passers-by, aiding them to illegally cross to Tanzania, as cases of individuals sneaking in and out of Kenya, without screening rise.
In a feature aired by Citizen TV on Friday, May 8, the female officer was recorded taking bribes from a motorbike rider in Isebania, and a pickup driver too, who she let through to Tanzania.
Health CS Mutahi Kagwe has numerously lamented over how individuals sneak in and out of Kenya through panya roots, urging citizens to report those circumventing the manned borders. However, the new case raises questions on police ability to keep the borders safe, as Kenya and Tanzania recorded an upsurge of Covid-19 cases.
"These people are crossing the borders and when they meet our police officers, they bribe them. Why should you take Ksh 50 or Ksh 100 to risk the lives of 100 or 1,000 people?" an irate resident wondered.
Migori Governor, Okoth Obado, also criticised the law enforcers, tasked with protecting borders.
"The greatest challenge facing us is how to ensure what we discuss and direct is adhered to. Most people end up disobeying the law.
Individuals on motorbikes have to pay their dues to the police officers here before they travel into the neighbouring country," Obado lamented.
The borders have proved to be one of the major areas watched keenly by the Ministry of Health, as more stringent measures have been placed for truck drivers crossing into Uganda and Nairobi, as a number of them were reported to be Covid-19 carriers.
"Truck drivers must be tested 48 hours before travel and be issued a Covid-19 free certificate which is valid for 14 days. Before being let into the Mombasa Port, Nairobi and Naivasha, as well as at the border points, they will be required to submit the Covid-19 free certificate," CS Kagwe directed on Wednesday, May 6 while addressing the media.
On Tuesday, May 5, Namanga, Kajiado County residents raised an alarm after a number of Kenyans sneaked into Tanzania to party, with the neighbouring country witnessing an upsurge of cases after failing to impose stringent measures to curb Covid-19. This puts at risk the ability of Kenya and Tanzania to control the pandemic.
On Friday, May 8, a woman who escaped from Eastleigh, Nairobi, a Covid-19 hotspot, was arrested in Namanga and placed under forced quarantine.
"We are wondering how the woman passed the roadblocks and came to this place. That simply shows that those who have been tasked to man the roadblocks are not doing their job," one of the residents stated.
Video: Citizen TV
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