Register us beyond Huduma centres, boda boda riders urge state

Boda boda riders have appealed to the government to take their registration beyond the Huduma Centres.

The exercise which started on Monday is aimed at restoring sanity in the sector which has recently come under criticism for advancing criminal activities.

Speaking on Monday in Nairobi, the riders, expressed concern that confining the registration only in Huduma Centres was limiting them.

They said that the queues at the centres are too long making the registration exercise time consuming.

"We are so many, they also need to increase the registration kits," a rider who had showed up for registration at a centre in Nairobi said.

"The registration clerks also need to be sent to villages because it's tiresome for some people to make it to towns for the registration," he added.

Kenya has a total of 52 Huduma Centres spread across the country.

With over 2.5 milion riders currently active in the country, that would mean one Huduma Centre will handle an average of 48,000 riders.

President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered the fresh registration of the riders into Saccos following an incident where a female motorist was sexually assaulted by riders on Wangari Maathai road on March 4.

The driver had stopped to attend to a rider she was involved in an accident with before the other riders jammed her vehicle and attempted to eject her by force. 

The registration exercise will run for 60 working days and is expected to end on June 24.

Upon completion of the biometric registration, verified riders whose details will be captured will be issued with smart driving licenses.

The driving licenses will contain the riders' National Hospital Insurance Fund details for ease of treatment in the event that they are involved in traffic accidents.