• The campaign ‘Restore Heritage’ is led by the Save Lamu organization and over 20 other activist groups and Community Based Organizations.
• Lamu old town was listed by Unesco as a heritage site in 2001 due to its well-preserved culture and heritage spanning decades.
Activists in Lamu are on a mission to collect over 1,000 signatures in an attempt to eject boda boda operators from Lamu town, a heritage site.
The campaign dubbed Restore Heritage is led by the Save Lamu organization and over 20 other activist groups and Community Based Organizations are involved.
The signatures will then be forwarded to Governor Fahim Twaha, county commissioner Irungu Macharia and the area OCS.
Lamu old town was listed by Unesco as a heritage site in 2001 due to its well-preserved culture and heritage spanning decades.
Speaking in the town on Tuesday, however, Save Lamu secretary general Walid Ahmed said the presence of the motorcycles in the old town had greatly affected its status as a world heritage site as Unesco was now threatening to have it delisted.
A world heritage site must be an already classified landmark, unique is some respect as geographically and historically identifiable with special cultural or physical significance.
For Lamu, it’s the well-preserved and culture and heritage that attracted the listing by Unesco.
Ahmed said the status of the site is under threat from immense westernization but most of all, the presence of motorcycles.
“The status of this old town dictates that the culture remains as has been over the years and that’s traditional. Lamu has used only donkeys and carts for transport and that’s how it’s should stay. Unesco has already put Lamu on the watch list for delisting. Boda bodas must go,” Ahmed said.
The activists said the push to remove boda boda from the town was also partly because of the increased accidents and deaths caused by the bikes since they began operating in the town.
The activists say the number of tourists coming to Lamu has also decreased due to the hullaballoo caused by the operators in the town and have asked locals to support the course by providing as many signatures as possible.
Lamu fort curator Mohamed Mwenje said the campaign couldn’t have been timelier.
He reiterated that the town risked being delisted due to the presence of western elements among the motorbikes, vehicles and bicycles.
“If the community has led this initiative, then we will fully support it. Unesco is seriously considering dropping Lamu town due to all these,” he said.
Lamu municipality chairperson Omar Famau, however, said there is need for all stakeholders to be consulted before a decision is made to avert conflict.
Lamu Trade and Tourism chief officer Atwa Salim said the county is working on a legislation to contain the boda boda business in the town.
“We can’t just wake up and tell them to pack considering it’s a means of livelihood. But at the same time, that’s not an excuse to threaten the status of the site,” Salim said.
There are over 200 boda boda operators in Lamu town.
Previous efforts by the county to limit the operators to the outskirts of the town haven’t worked.