'Bra' cop on Jogoo Road demands his pound of flesh with menace and daring

Passengers on a matatu destined for Nairobi’s Eastlands were treated to an interesting drama as a cop flagged down the vehicle around the Maziwa area, on Jogoo Road. The traffic policeman, probably from Shauri Moyo Police station, reared his head inside the matatu, but the conductor was in the back, collecting fares.

The policeman wasted no time inspecting the matatu, or scrutinising the driver’s credentials to ensure safety; he just wanted to speak with the conductor. “Kwani iko kwa bra,” he chided in his undisguised solicitation.

Let’s unpack this brazen, naked display of corruption. Never mind the demeaning intimation about the bra that introduces the gender dimension—implying the conductor wasn’t “man enough” to keep his money in a wallet, and dishing out the bribe without incident. But referencing the bra has a sexual connotation as well. It was a defilement of the collective dignity of the passengers and the conductor.

By demanding the bribe with such audacity is an open display of the indiscipline that has permeated into the police force. The officer had no qualms about disguising his intents, even in the presence of so many witnesses.

The conductor, I am told, played along, peeling off a Sh100 note and handing it to a passenger for onward transmission to the waiting cop. That’s the fare for two passengers, and it is assumed that the cop collects his dues on every trip, ensuring the matatu operator will drive like hell to make more rounds and garner enough to pay off his loans—and recover the monies haemorrhaged through the bottomless pit that the bra cop represents. Bure kabisa.