Milimani High Court Judge Bahati Mwamuye on Friday issued an order barring the Nairobi County Government from evicting traders from Wakulima Market, popularly known as Marikiti to Kangundo Road Market.
This comes just a day after the traders demonstrated in the city centre to challenge Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja’s plan.
The judge asked the traders and the county to hold a meeting on Tuesday September 17th to discuss the way forward on the issue and report their findings to the court.
“Pending inter-partes hearing and determination of this application, an order is hereby issued restraining the county from evicting the traders operating within or in the vicinity of Wakulima Market, Nairobi or interfering with their business operations in those areas,” the judge ruled.
Traders from Muthurwa protesting in Nairobi.
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This ruling follows a case filed by Wakulima Traders Market Association.
The directive to remove the traders from Wakulima market to Kangundo Road market was issued on September 10.
However, the traders have decried the order stating that they have not been given a good enough reason why they should honour it.
The case will be mentioned on September 30.
Following the protests that brought businesses to a standstill in some parts of Nairobi city, several politicians rallied behind the traders.
Most notably, Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua wrote an open letter to his ‘brother’ Johnson Sakaja asking him to heed to the cries of his people as they had called for his help.
However, in a rather defiant act, Sakaja simply replied to the deputy president with a simple, “My Elder brother H.E. Rigathi Gachagua,you have my number.”
Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai on his part took the DP’s statement as an intrusion into Nairobi matters even though the latter has often described himself as a village person reminding him that Nairobi is not a village.
Other politicians who showed their support to the traders were Embakasi East MP Babu Owino who has consistently told them to keep up the spirit and not to relent until their cries were heard.
A photo of the newly constructed Kangundo Road Market, September 2024
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Nairobi County
