A Nairobi-based lawyer has sued the Nairobi County led by Governor Johnson Sakaja and the Nairobi County Assembly over illegal parking on roads around the county headquarters and the assembly.
Lawyer Robert Leroy Ochieng on Thursday accused the county leadership, especially Members of the County Assembly (MCAs), of parking outside the designated parking zones thereby infringing on the rights of the road users.
In the suit, the lawyer argues that the county government has failed to regulate the reckless parking abused by MCAs, including spaces designated for people living with disabilities.
The lawyer, therefore, wants the court to declare illegal parking outside designated areas and pedestrian footpaths along City Hall Way, Mama Ngina, and Wabera streets.
Cars at a parking lot in Kenya.
Photo
ITDP Africa
“The members of the county assembly have converted the road into a parking area,” the lawyer lamented.
“We filed a petition in court to ensure that road parking regulations are obeyed because these MCAs are the ones that pass the laws supposed to be implemented by the County Government of Nairobi.”
The lawyer, therefore, called on the rights of all road users to be respected.
Parking vehicles on walkways has long been forbidden with the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) laws spelling out a penalty of Ksh5,000 for those found palpable.
“Driving on or through a pavement or pedestrian walkway leads to a penalty of Ksh5,000,” the Kenya Traffic Act violations and penalties guideline by NTSA read in part.
Previously, the Nairobi County Government issued a firm warning on drivers parking on the CBD pavements through its by-laws terming the act illegal.
“Parking on a pavement is an illegal act,” the Nairobi County Laws read in part.
The Laws, therefore, state that vehicles had to be parked within the space marked by red or yellow lines or any other mark provided by the council.
A photo of NTSA and police officers conducting an operation in Nairobi County on March 20, 2023.
Photo
NTSA
