Long queues were witnessed at different matatu termini as Kenyans rushed in a last-minute effort to travel ahead of the Tuesday, August 9 general lection.
Media reports indicated that hundreds remained stranded at various bus stops with no Public Service Vehicles (PSVs).
The reports further revealed that many buses were fully booked until Wednesday, August 10- a day after the election date.
As a result, matatu operators have seized the opportunity to hike fares across various termini – further denting the pockets of Kenyans who have to deal with the current economic crisis.
For instance, a spot-check by Kenyans.co.ke revealed that for passengers heading to Nakuru from Nairobi, they were paying Ksh1,000 as opposed to the regular Ksh400.
Further, some buses were charging Ksh1,500 in order to ferry passengers to Busia, Kisumu, Kakamega and Mumias from Nairobi- an extra Ksh500 from the conventional Ksh1,000.
This has created a crisis leading to many Kenyans contemplating whether or not to travel in order to exercise their constitutional right. Others were forced to cancel their plans and opt not to travel during the election season.
“We were trusting that there will be adequate vehicles but what we have witnessed in the past few days is lack of matatus to ferry passengers to their designated routes,” a passenger heading to Kisii from Nairobi lamented.
Other passengers also expressed their desire to wait for the results while at their rural homes and opt not to travel beforehand in fear of past election fracas.
The ongoing transport crisis is likely to affect the chances of the 22 million registered voters in the upcoming General Election, which is only 48 hours away.
The much-awaited day will see four presidential hopefuls battle it out for the country’s top seat.
The candidates include Azimio la Umoja presidential candidate Raila Odinga, Kenya Kwanza’s William Ruto, Roots party’s George Wajackoyah and Agano party’s Waihiga Mwaure.
Source: kENYANS.CO.KE