A shocking video circulating online has drawn outrage after
showing a man being brutally assaulted in Eastleigh, Nairobi, in an incident
that Nairobi County officials say exposes the growing impunity of street
hawkers in the area.
The undated footage, filmed on one of Eastleigh’s busiest streets,
captures a chaotic scene where a man is surrounded and beaten by a group of
people while others stand by, watching in shock.
A few brave bystanders
try to intervene, but the violence leaves the victim severely injured. He is
now fighting for his life in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
According to Nairobi County Chief Officer for Environment
Geoffrey Mosiria, the attack occurred after the man requested hawkers to clear
the road so that he could pass and attend to a family emergency.
Instead of yielding,
the hawkers allegedly blocked his way and turned on him when he stepped out of his
vehicle to plead with them.
“This young man, who was beaten as though he were a thief,
had only requested the Jam Street hawkers to allow him to pass. Instead of
letting him through, they attacked him until he ended up in the ICU,” Mosiria
said.
The incident has sparked renewed debate about hawking in
Eastleigh, where entire roads have been transformed into open-air markets,
often blocking both motorists and pedestrians.
Mosiria condemned the violence, describing it as the height
of impunity.
“For how long will people continue to suffer in the name of
earning a living? Hawkers who are clearly in the wrong still believe they have
the right to attack innocent people who also have the right to use the road,”
he said.
The official warned that Nairobi County would no longer
tolerate lawlessness linked to unregulated hawking, illegal dumping, and
blocked drainage systems.
“As a government, we cannot remain silent and watch people
behave as if there are no rules and regulations governing our county. The law
is very clear, and such behavior will not be tolerated,” Mosiria added.
The attack has stirred public emotion, with many Nairobians
expressing sympathy for the victim and calling for stronger enforcement of laws
regulating hawking in the city.
Others, however, argue that hawkers—many struggling to make
ends meet—should be given safer, designated trading spaces to avoid
confrontations like the one that left a man hospitalized.
For now, the Eastleigh incident remains a stark reminder of
the fragile balance between livelihoods and law and order in Nairobi’s bustling
streets.
