Esther Rori looked dejected, tired and angry about the turn of events at Maasai market last Saturday.
It was past 2pm but the 74-year-old granny had not sold a single item.
On normal days, by that time she would have raked in at least Sh800 from her merchandise.
She would have bought lunch for herself and her 15-year-old grandson who helps her carry items to the market.
But last Saturday was no normal market day for Rori and hundreds of traders who sell curios at the popular city market.
“I arrived here at around 8am and found the gates closed. I was shocked because I did not know what was going on,” Rori
said.
She relies on her business of selling beaded necklaces and kikois to house, feed and educate her three grandchildren whose parents died three years ago.
Rori lives in a remote village in Kiserian, Kajiado county. She travels to the city every weekend to sell her items at Maasai market.
The market is temporary. On week days, it serves as the parking bay for the Supreme Court.
Rori is among hundreds of traders hit hard by City Hall’s decision to raise the market fees from Sh50 to Sh1,000 per trader per day. That is a huge sum.
There was a standoff at the market on Saturday when county officers moved in to enforce the order, leading to closure of the busy market for more than six hours.
Traders, including the aged Rori, were locked out and sat idly as their leaders negotiated with the county officers.
“Sometimes I make Sh1,000, sometimes Sh2,000 but there are bad days when you can’t sell even Sh500. If they want us to pay Sh1,000 that means we will be working for the county. What will my grandchildren eat? How will they go to school,” Rori posed.
The market, which operates only on Saturdays and Sundays, has been in existence for more than 10 years.
Traders mainly sell tourist items like sculptures, beaded necklaces, batik wall hangings, shoes, soap stone carvings, sisal bags, kikois and clothing.
Late last year, the city government pinned up notices on the walls of the market informing traders of the new Sh1,000 levy.
“This is to inform you that as from January 1, 2019, you are required to pay Sh10,00 for each plot reserved as per the gazetted notice in the Finance Act 2015,” the notice read.
“Please note that you will only be allowed to reserve the parking space after payment has been made to the Nairobi City County.”
Director of parking Tom Tinega said City Hall loses more than Sh450, 000 every weekend because the traders occupy the reserved parking spaces but do not pay for them. There are 225 parking slots in the space the traders occupy.
“The Supreme Court parking is a reserved area and the county charges Sh1,000 per reserved space per day. That is why we decided to charge them the amount as they occupy parking spaces and deny us revenue,” Tinega said.
After hours of standoff on Saturday, governor Mike Sonko intervened and asked his officers and the traders to sit and agree on a figure.
“This is not just a market but is also a parking lot and the county has complained that they are losing revenue. So we have agreed that we will be paying Sh200 on top of the Sh50 that we pay now,” market chairman Moses Mbugua said.
Tinega said they agreed on the amount after they realised that the traders share parking slots.
“We realised that in one slot, you find three or four traders. So Sh200 will work for us and in deed for them,” he said.