Kitale Traders Stranded as Ruto-Natembeya Row Deepens

Traders in Kitale Trans Nzoia County are counting losses as a dispute between President William Ruto and Governor George Natembeya over market stalls has left many unable to work. Citizen TV Kenya reports that the standoff followed a 24-hour eviction notice and left traders stranded.

Kitale was tense on Monday as heavily armed police were deployed across parts of the town. The dispute centres on how stalls at the new bus park are allocated. The facility was recently commissioned by the President.

Reports indicate that traders under the Kitale Bus Park Sacco were given priority, after Ruto directed that the remaining stalls be allocated by balloting.

Natembeya accuses the President of bringing in traders from Uganda to take most of the stalls, which raises questions about who is eligible.

That allegation had not been independently verified at the time of publication. Ruto, for his part, accuses the governor of stalling national government development projects.

Police disrupted a planned prayer meeting at the county headquarters around noon. Natembeya later addressed traders and appealed for calm.

The row comes amid wider tension over who should run small businesses in Kenya. In early September, Ruto ordered authorities to shut down small-scale businesses run by foreign nationals.

Critics say foreign traders are being made a scapegoat for a struggling economy ahead of next year’s election. Ruto argues Kenya must protect opportunities at the lower end of the economy.

For ordinary traders, the politics matters less than the lost income. Antony Masika of KNCCI Trans Nzoia said most traders have been hit hard since Thursday and want the stalemate to end so they stop counting losses.

Traders and residents have appealed to both leaders to resolve their differences warning that the confrontation is disrupting normal activity in the town.

Many of these traders depend on daily sales to pay rent, school fees and household bills. A prolonged dispute between the national and county governments leaves them with little certainty about where, or whether, they can trade.

For now, Kitale waits to see whether the two leaders will find common ground or whether the market will remain caught between them.

Link; https://x.com/citizentvkenya/status/2115159781279191221?a=wj27r6ohVZboRUwASug&s=19