Street families back after Easter crackdown

George Tirop, 14, and other street children at the Globe Cinema roundabout in Nairobi in 2015. FILE PHOTO | EVANS HABIL |

What you need to know:

  • City Hall launched a crackdown on the street children and other street families following complaints from city dwellers, but a spot check on Tuesday revealed they were back on the streets.
  • Speaking to the Nation, Nairobi County Secretary Robert Ayisi said the city's inspectorate department had collaborated with the national government to clear the city of the street families.

Street families are back in the city after they were bundled out during the Easter holidays as officials argued they posed a "security threat".

City Hall launched a crackdown on the street children and other street families following complaints from city dwellers, but a spot check on Tuesday revealed they were back on the streets.

Over the past month, some of the street families, in small groups, have been harassing people, stealing, and begging for money and food.

The most notorious are groups of children who hang around eateries.

But speaking to the Nation, Nairobi County Secretary Robert Ayisi said the city's inspectorate department had collaborated with the national government to clear the city of the street families.

“We have a daily crackdown. We have the social services department helping the county government to remove them from the streets,” said Dr Ayisi.

Last week, Dr Ayisi said, 130 street children were arrested and taken to the Joseph Kangethe rehabilitation centre.