Milimani High Court Judge Bahati Mwamuye on Friday, September 13 issued a temporary order suspending the eviction notice issued by Nairobi County to traders.
Traders at Wakulima Market, Nairobi have reason to smile after the High Court temporarily halted their relocation to Kangundo Road Market by the Nairobi County government.
Milimani High Court Judge Bahati Mwamuye on Friday, September 13 issued a temporary order suspending the eviction notice issued by Nairobi County to traders.
“Pending inter parties 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.
The Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi. /FILE
Further, Justice Mwamuye directed the traders and the county to hold a meeting on Tuesday next week (September 17) to discuss the issue at hand and report to the court regarding the same. The case will be mentioned on September 30, 2024, for further directions.
The judge issued the orders following a case filed by all Wakulima Market Traders Association, a case necessitated by a notice issued on September 10 by the County Secretary demanding they immediately relocate to Kangundo Road market.
The traders in their court papers claimed that the stakeholders including members of the association were never involved in any way by the county to resolve the issues that might have necessitated the issuance of the notice.
They say the county has yet to give them reasons as to why they have decided to relocate them without notice. “The lack of availing a reason to the petitioners amounts to an infringement of the petitioners’ rights,” the traders argue.
In a notice dated September 10, acting Nairobi County secretary Godfrey Akumali ordered onions, pineapple, oranges, and potato traders at Wakulima Market to relocate to Kangundo Road Market, stating that the move was to ease congestion in the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD) for smooth flow of traffic.
The saga was climaxed by protests in Nairobi that brought businesses to a standstill in some parts of the city, with traders waking up to find a fire had razed the market on September 12.
This triggered a statement by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua calling for Governor Johnson Sakaja to consider having a meeting with the leadership of the Wakulima Market.
