Bar owners explain why there's a surge in 'mchele' cases
From left: Charles Nasieku, National Vice Chair BAHLITA, Simon Njoroge, National Chair BAHLITA and Daniel Ouma, chairperson BAHLITA, Kisumu.
The Bar, Hotels and Liquor Traders Association (BAHLITA) has blamed the effects of Covid-19 on the rise in the number of people being drugged (“mchele”) before being defrauded.
They said liquor is a luxury that many Kenyans avoided at the height of the pandemic but now they can purchase it and some drinkers are overindulging.
But measures have been adopted to curb mchele cases, said BAHLITA secretary general Boniface Gachoka.
“We have written to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) boss George Kinoti to provide a team of officers who will help [eliminate] this booming business.”
He said BAHLITA would work with the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya to identify chemists selling the drugs to people involved in the mchele business.
Echoing the need to eradicate mchele in bars, Daniel Ouma, the chairperson BAHLITA’s Kisumu branch, said they had asked bar owners to install CCTV cameras and educate waiters, managers and bouncers on first-aid care.
“Once a client has been noted to be sleepy or drowsy, the first thing should be to wake them up and if he is not responding offer first aid,” he advised.
Track the suspect
“If the person responsible for [lacing] the drink can be identified, liaise with the police and track the suspect, if not post them on social media platforms.”
The drugs are mainly used during surgery as an anaesthetic and for treating psychosis. High doses can cause deaths, permanent amnesia, and sleepiness that can last several days.
In the last two weeks, men across social media platforms have lamented the use of mchele, with some disclosing that they had lost their properties and money.
Addressing issues affecting bar owners, BAHLITA, led by its chair Simon Njoroge, complained about proposed increases in excise duty on beer and spirits, saying that if the taxes are adopted there would be an increase in the illicit alcohol trade as Kenyans would start smuggling cheap products from other markets.
The National Treasury, in the Finance Bill 2022, proposes to increase excise duty on alcoholic beverages at these rates: beer, 10 percent; spirits 20 percent; glass bottles, new excise tax of 25 percent. It also wants a 15 percent rise in advertising fees for alcohol products.
“The government should be cognisant of the current hard economic times that Kenyans are going through and not burden them further through harsh laws that risk pushing thousands of Kenyans out of jobs. The proposed excise duty will not only affect manufacturers and farmers but also businesses and consumers,” Mr Njoroge said.
Claiming that 250,000 people working in bars and hotels had lost their jobs during the Covid period and only 15,000 are currently employed, Mr Njoroge warned the government that this number would decrease if they pass the bill to increase taxes.
Barley and sorghum
“Beer is a primary consumer of barley and sorghum. With the decline in beer volumes, farmers will be forced to cut down production hence loss of livelihoods.”
On reducing noise pollution from entertainment zones, Mr Njoroge said they are encouraging the creation of WhatsApp groups where bar owners and neighbours can air their grievances.
On alleged racism at some clubs, with the most recent incident involving Alchemist in Westlands, Nairobi, BAHLITA condemned such behaviour, commending Nairobi Governor Anne Kananu’s decision to close it down and the claims are investigated.
