Sakaja makes u-turn, ends crackdown on city nightclubs and bars
By Kevin CheruiyotGovernor Johnson Sakaja’s administration has announced end of night operations from Nairobi County inspectorate officers targeting bars and nightclubs. This was agreed during Tuesday’s cabinet meeting.
Governor Sakaja said while the county government will strictly enforce the law on sale of liquor and operations of bars and nightclubs, this should be done in a manner to achieve the intended goal without harassment.
“What good does it do to raid clubs, arrest the DJ, confiscate his equipment and send clients scampering? This is not the goal. The goal is to ensure that the proprietors follow the law,” Sakaja said.
Also read: How Nairobi managed to collect 1 million tonnes of garbage in one year
Governor Sakaja said only the offenders should be held to account but in an orderly manner.
“Enforcement officers should access an offending premise, measure the decibels and collect all the evidence they need, issue an enforcement notice and leave, then return the next day during the day to take the action they need to,” Sakaja said.
This brings to an end the night operation that has been going on since last year when the governor announced a crackdown on noisy clubs in residential areas.
Also read: Four passport brokers arrested as crackdown on Nyayo House cartels intensifies
The cabinet also approved the zoning of areas where night club licenses can be issued, which includes the city centre, Westlands Centre, Industrial Area, parts of Ngara and Pangani, several areas in Eastlands, the corridors along Mombasa Road and Thika Highway, shopping malls among others.
The Executive also agreed to set up an aggregation and industrial park in Mathare, next to Utalii Hotel along Thika Highway.
The project will be managed as a county corporation and will be a special economic zone (SEZ) in order to explore manufacturing opportunities and open up investment opportunities.
Also read: Uproar over KWS new requirement for eCitizen accounts, advance park entry fees