No hawkers in ‘Yurop’: Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o bans hawking in Kisumu
Kisumu skyline as seen from Lake Victoria.
The County Chief directed all the traders to be relocated inside the 5,000 capacity Uhuru Business Park, which has remained unoccupied for the past one year.
Governor Nyong'o feels trading in the streets is not only unhealthy but exposes the traders to various hazards.
"This will apply to all markets in the County. Traders who were allocated stalls at the Uhuru Business Park Phase I but have not occupied them will be given public notices to either move in or lose the stalls,” he said.
Similarly, he gave a warning to cartels who have been harassing traders and allocating themselves stalls without following due process.
Last week, three people were hospitalized with injuries, after a fight erupted between factions over sharing of the market space at Uhuru Business park.
"We shall not tolerate lawlessness at the market. Members of cartels who have not been given stalls at the market must keep off and confine their activities to areas they had been allocated," said Governor Nyong'o.
Currently hundreds of traders from Garissa lodge, Nyamlori market and Apindi street have been thronging the market to seek spaces as the deadline for relocation draws near.
"The City management and the Department of Trade will use the bio-metric system to ensure smooth settlement of traders and to hold frequent consultations with the business community,” said Prof Nyong'o.
Meanwhile, Kisumu County is planning to scale up waste management through environmental cleanups in markets by ensuring that all garbage is collected on time and taken to the new Waste to Energy project site at Kasese in Muhoroni sub-county.
The Uhuru Business Park- a joint project between the National and the Kisumu County Government was completed last year.
The construction of this market, with a capacity to accommodate 5,000 traders, came at an important time when the county government was settling traders who were displaced during the revitalization of the port and the upgrading of the railway line.
Some of the traders came from Lwang'ni, Akamba Line, Fontala, Konyando, KPLC, Back Street, Winmatt, and Varsity Plaza area.
The works at the market saw the construction of 20 open shades which are partitioned and fitted with lockable stalls and platforms to accommodate different sectors including loading and off-loading zones for wholesalers, a police post and perimeter fence surrounding the market.
