10 things that make living in Nairobi a nightmare
1. Traffic – this is the biggest headache for Nairobians. Missing flights and being late for appointments is the norm and often one gets lesser things done at the end of the day.
2. Return of hawkers to the CBD – the already congested streets alleys have now been taken over by hawkers who move from their designated areas during rush hours, bringing their wares closer to the customers.
3. Garbage and upcoming dumpsites – the once clean city has now been littered all over the streets and in some paths down town there are upcoming dumpsites where people take their garbage as opposed to handing it over to collection trucks.
4. Human waste wielding gangs – yes, they are back like never before, they threaten motorists stuck in traffic especially around Valley Road who happen to have their windows open. Chances are that for you to escape their wrath you will part with nothing less than 500 shillings.
5. Muggers, pick pockets and flash gangs – criminals have mastered the art and will grab your expensive phone and walk straight ahead as if nothing happened. If you meet a suspicious crowd of young men on the alleys, RUN! There are also flash gangs that walk in large groups and create commotion to allow them time to steal from unsuspecting pedestrians.
6. Unsafe buildings – recent cases of buildings collapsing have made life unbearable for residents as they are unable to tell which building is safe for occupation. Corruption in the building inspectorate department has enabled rogue developers to obtain certificates of occupancy without satisfying requirements.
7. Uncertainty over the everlasting terror attacks – the number of times terror alerts have been sent out among residents are uncountable. Whenever there is a terror attack in the country, messages on planned attacks in the city are circulated making people to live in uncertainty.
8. Extortion by traffic police and council askaris – often when a motorist is stopped by a traffic policeman/woman chances are they will part with some money for existing or no-existing traffic offences. Council askaris are also notorious for harassing innocent Nairobians walking in the streets and since going to City Hall to clarify what your offense is might be tedious, the askaris get a few hundreds and set you free.
9. Street families have grown to hundreds if not thousands – the number of street children along the allies has increased significantly. Meeting a young girl telling you to buy her food or a young man asking for some shillings to add up transport has become the norm and in some cases when you ignore them insults will sure come your way.
10. The city’s crime rate is on the rise – from carjacking incidents to robberies and rape cases, Nairobi has become unsafe for everyone including the prominent people walking with body guards. Cases of people being robbed in broad daylight while others watch have become all too common.