Nairobi County has stopped issuing new licences to matatu saccos after it emerged there are more than 400 unregistered saccos operating in the city.
According to the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), only 272 matatu saccos are registered to operate in the capital city.
692 REGISTERED SACCOS
However, records by City Hall indicate that there are 692 registered matatu saccos in Nairobi. This means that 420 saccos are not registered by NTSA.
NTSA’s Manager for Licensing Jackson Mutua said the 272 are the registered saccos in Nairobi. This excludes those operating outside Nairobi but end their trips in the capital.
This emerged during a Nairobi County Assembly Transport committee that had raised concern over proliferation of unregistered matatu saccos in the Central Business District.
“This is a serious matter because if they are not registered then how do they pay for the seasonal parking and where does the money go to?” posed the committee’s chairperson Joyce Muthoni.
CORRUPTION
Utalii MCA Wilson Ochola accused county officers of colluding with the owners of the unregistered saccos to allow them to operate in the CBD.
“This reveals a high tendency of corruption and laxity by county [law] enforcement team,” said Mr Ochola.
The committee said that there is a possibility that among the 420 unregistered saccos, some might not have reached the required standard to operate with the “new” saccos were linked to the alleged issuance of fake letters used to allocate stages for them.
According to NTSA regulations, for a matatu sacco to be registered, it requires to have a minimum number of 30 PSVs.
ACCURATE FIGURES
Nairobi County Director of Parking Tom Tinega called for both the county and NTSA to reconcile their lists to get the accurate figure.
“By so doing, it will also be easier to know the number of saccos with genuine licences and the amount of revenue we expect,” said Mr Tinega.
NTSA recommended that no more saccos should be registered by City Hall. The committee also resolved that all pick up and drop off points letters be revoked and be issued a fresh.
SOURCE: nation.co.ke
