This archive report was first published on 22 May 2020.
On Thursday, truck drivers at the busy Malaba One Stop Border Post brought operations to a standstill, protesting against what they called “harassment and discrimination” by Ugandan authorities.
The drivers, led by their chairman Kenneth Okeyo, outlined six key issues they wanted the Kenyan and Ugandan authorities to address urgently before normal cargo transport operations could resume.
At the top of their list was the release of a Kenyan truck driver who had been held in Malaba, Uganda, after testing positive for COVID-19.
According to Okeyo, the driver had been in custody for 48 hours and was at risk of further complications due to the delay in treatment.
“Our colleague has been in custody for 48 hours. This may endanger his life since he is Coronavirus positive. What we want is for the Kenyan authorities to intervene and ensure he is released,” Okeyo stated.
The drivers were also protesting the delayed release of COVID-19 test results in Malaba, Uganda. They claimed that samples of some of their colleagues had been taken on May 16, but the results were still pending.
Furthermore, the drivers expressed frustration with the treatment they received from Ugandan security officers, who they claimed removed their truck number plates whenever they alighted from their vehicles.
“We are not ready for more frustration. Ugandan security officers remove our truck number plates whenever we alight from our vehicles to either buy food or relieve ourselves,” Okeyo said.
The drivers suggested that if Ugandans feared they were out to infect them with Coronavirus, then the Ugandan government should suspend cargo haulage from Kenya until the pandemic was contained.
“If Uganda is not ready to accommodate us, then they should divert the route so that we use the Kitale-Lodwar route to Juba and other parts of South Sudan,” Okeyo said.
