Boda Boda Safety Association of Kenya chairman Kevin Mbadi, on Friday, November 11, addressed the issue of the high rate of bodaboda muggings while on an interview with NTV.
Mbadi noted that Kenyans should stop blaming the bodaboda riders, who he argued differed from bodaboda thugs.
Explaining why the crime cases associated with bodaboda were increasing, he clearly explained how easy it was to hire a bike at a fee from shylocks.
“It's easy to get a motorbike these days, you can get a motorbike with 15,000 from the shylocks, and those people are the ones that are using the motorcycles for stealing and committing a crime,” he stated.
“The thugs do not belong to BAK. We have all our rides situated at particular spots in the country and it will be very hard for them to participate in crime and then later get back to their respective places,” he added.
On Wednesday, November 9, the association shared a press release concerning the bodaboda crime where they emphasized not being associated with the notorious thugs.
“We have received with great concern cases of some riders robbing members of the public, especially within Nairobi CBD.
"BAK would like to state categorically that those suspected are not our members, their stages are not even known to us. We urge the security forces involved in curbing them to continue being firm on them,” read part of the statement.
The association further urged all the riders belonging to BAK to operate from their stages and to identify themselves appropriately whenever needed to.
Also, they are ready to work with the interior CS in streamlining the sector on security matters and asked for his support.
Security expert, Haggai Chogo, while speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, emphasized key safety measures Kenyans should consider while the crime rates are at peak.
Some of the measures he shared were, walking in groups, carrying more than one phone, avoiding hotspot areas, and the government installing surveillance cameras on all streets.
