How petty policing is silently crushing the hustle economy

Brian Otieno,a Kenyan youth juggling multiple jobs to survive the hush economic times.[Juliet Omelo,Standard]

The directive by Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo ordering the release of motorcycles impounded over minor offences is not just timely, it is an indictment of a broken policing culture. One that has suffocated the informal economy for years.

Across the country, thousands of boda boda riders, taxi operators, mama mboga suppliers, delivery riders, and small transporters wake up every morning fearing police impounding.

A missing reflector, a faded number plate, an expired inspection sticker, or a minor paperwork discrepancy often becomes grounds for harassment, arbitrary arrests, and impoundment.

In many cases, motorists and riders are forced to part with bribes or spend days chasing releases at police stations and courts while their livelihoods collapse. This is not law enforcement. It is economic sabotage. The so-called hustlers are routinely harassed by authorities, making the venture a hide-and-seek game.

For many Kenyan families, a motorcycle is not a luxury asset; it is school fees. It is rented. It is food on the table. The moment police confiscate a boda boda over a petty offence for days or weeks, they are not merely enforcing traffic regulations; they are condemning households to hunger and debt. 

Loan defaults rise, children miss school, and vulnerable families sink deeper into poverty. The tragedy is that the victims are usually young people struggling honestly to survive in an economy with limited formal jobs. 

Kenya’s boda boda sector employs millions directly and indirectly. Yet instead of supporting this crucial economic engine through fair regulation and structured reforms, rogue police and county officers have turned the roads into toll stations through intimidation and extortion.

Worse still, the indiscriminate impounding has created widespread distrust between citizens and the police. Communities increasingly view officers not as protectors of law and order, but as predators feeding on desperation. Genuine policing suffers because wananchi become less willing to cooperate with security agencies they perceive as abusive and exploitative.

Of course, discipline on the roads is paramount and must be maintained. Dangerous riding, criminal activity, lack of insurance, and reckless behavior must be punished firmly.

But punishment must be reasonable, lawful, and proportionate. Petty offences should attract warnings, moderate fines, or corrective measures, not economic execution.

Kenya cannot claim to empower youth entrepreneurship while criminalising survival through excessive policing. Government policy must now move beyond public statements. Officers found extorting riders, unlawfully detaining vehicles, or weaponising traffic laws against struggling citizens should face disciplinary action and prosecution.

We need a policing philosophy that protects livelihoods instead of destroying them. Economic recovery will not come from speeches while ordinary Kenyans are being crippled at roadside barricades. A nation cannot grow when its hustlers are under siege.