Kenya Railways Announces Delays Over Theft

An undated image of police officers at a Kenya Railways terminal
An undated image of police officers at a Kenya Railways terminal.
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Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) has announced delays after recording vandalism cases of the ongoing rehabilitation of various railway lines.

A report by Business Daily on Monday, January 25, indicated that three metre-gauge lines that were under rehabilitation would take longer to be completed than earlier expected.

KRC Managing Director Philip Mainga confirmed that the completion of the three railway lines, Nakuru-Kisumu, Gilgil-Nyahururu and Longonot-Malaba, will suffer setbacks after various equipments such as sleepers, nuts and clips were stolen by vandals.

Nakuru-Kisumu (216 Kilometers) and Gilgil-Nyahururu (78 Kilometers) were scheduled to be completed by March 2021 while Longonot-Malaba (465 Kilometers) was set to be done by September 2021.

An image of Railway
A section of the Nakuru-Kisumu railway line that is under rehabilitation.
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"It's unfortunate that vandals have been coming behind our back to steal railway parts. We call upon the public to stop engaging in illegal activities along our railway line," stated Mainga.

He further noted that the vandalism had been extended to existing railway lines including the Nairobi-Mombasa line as well as that of Nairobi-Nanyuki.

He also disclosed that several individuals had been arrested in connection with the vandalism and were charged with sabotage, theft and destruction of infrastructure.

KRC has, in the recent past, been faced by numerous challenges including encroachment on its land hence hindering proper development.

On Wednesday, January 20, it was reported that defiant cartels in Nairobi had vowed not to vacate from the land.

Reports indicated that unauthorised people have continued to occupy KRC's land located between Addis Ababa and Bamburi Road.

It was believed that the cartels were colluding with Nairobi County Government officials to have their structures remain untouched by KRC.

Kenya Railways issued the warning after noticing that the activity on encroached land had increased after the station revamped some of its lines.

The corporation further indicated that those found encroaching on the property will get a 10-year prison term if found guilty.

President Uhuru Kenyatta flagging off the first train at Nairobi Central Station on November 10, 2020.
President Uhuru Kenyatta flagging off the first train at Nairobi Central Station on November 10, 2020.
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