There was drama in Eldoret town in the morning after a number of state of the art vehicles owned by local and international runners were clamped by the Uasin Gishu county enforcement officers for failing to pay parking fees.
The enforcement officers took the action despite the fact that the affected vehicles had displayed complimentary stickers issued to the athletes by the area Governor Jackson Mandago exempting them from the sh 100 daily levy as a way of rewarding them for the good work and glory they have brought to the society.
Pleas by one of the runners led by marathoner Abraham Chelang’a to spare them the embarrassment fell on deaf ears as the officers clamped his vehicle and sped off in a pick up to the consternation of onlookers along Mandago road within the town’s central business district.
Sh 100 daily levy
“Why are you clamping my vehicle and yet I have been exempted from paying sh 100 daily levy through the issuance of a complimentary parking sticker by the governor himself,’ posed Chelang’a.
Chelang’a complained that it was not fair to be subjected to harassment and embarrassment by the county officials and yet they have been exempted from paying the levy due to the glory and pride they have brought to the county and the country at large in their international meets.
But one of the enforcement officer’s dismissed him saying that they are under firm instruction to clamp down all the vehicles displaying complimentary sticklers after it emerged that owners of the said vehicles were abusing their privileges.
Contacted the director of revenue Jonah Lamai clarified that complimentary stickers issued to the runners and former leaders were
only meant to enable them access the county headquarters and not park their vehicles in the town free of charge.
Give international runners complimentary parking stickers
“We have discovered that some of the vehicle owners who have been issued with complimentary stickers were abusing the privilege accorded to them by the county executive by using their personal cars for tax business in the town,” said Lamai.
He asked the affected owners of the vehicles to park them inside the county headquarters or pay the daily levy should they decide to park them in the town’s streets like other private car owners.
This comes in the wake of a motion that was passed by members of the County Assembly of Uasin Gishu two years ago exempting renowned runners from levy as a way of rewarding their success and marketing the region.
The MCAs compelled the executive to select the athletes to be honored by being spared the parking levy among other offers in a bid to honor them.
Comfortably conduct their business
Gilbert Tenai, the Cheptiret/Kipchambo MCA who moved the motion argued that the regional government should provide the selected international runners with complimentary parking stickers so that they can comfortably conduct their business without being asked to pay sh 100 parking fee by attendants.
The MCA moved the motion after a prominent North Rift politician cum farmer Jackson Kibor who was once Wareng County Council chairperson caused a stir in the town by unclamping his KSh12 million Lexus vehicle after county officials decided to teach him a lesson.
Enraged by the action, Kibor then called on the county government to ensure it recognizes former leaders who worked in the defunct local authorities by allowing them to conduct businesses freely.