PHOTO CAPTION: A Nairobi Railway City commuter train, the revamped rail service that connects the metropolitan area. A frustrated commuter who ferried his household items from Nairobi to Naromoru via rail has expressed deep regrets about the decision after reportedly facing mistreatment at the Nairobi Central Railway Station.
Writing to this blog on Saturday, November 12, the victim narrated how he encountered shocking levels of greed and corruption by Kenya Railways luggage department officials, who seemed hellbent on ripping him off his hard-earned cash.
By the time they reached the intended destination, the short trip cost him more than he would have spent hiring an ordinary pick-up truck to ferry the same goods.
His story is quite self-explanatory, check it out below. "Hi Nyakundi, Kindly bring this matter to the attention of Kenyans and the relevant authorities; Yesterday 11th November 2022 I was really mistreated at Kenya Railways Nairobi Terminal (Railways Headquarters) and the amount charged to ferry my household items was not fair. Before using the railway services yesterday, I had inquired from them early in the week and I had gotten an assurance that they usually transport luggage and that the prices charged are fair. I believed them and brought my household items yesterday morning. I needed my household items transported from Nairobi to Naromoru a distance of fewer than 200 kilometres. Upon arrival at the gate at around 7 AM, I was shown where to keep the items by security. A lady in a Kenya Railways uniform came later and rudely asked me why I had kept my items there. She used very harsh words on me and couldn't even understand that it is their security who had shown me where to keep them. I felt so harassed as a customer and I would have left but I had no options since the car that brought the items had already left. Being a peace-loving Kenyan, I asked her where I should keep them and I moved them. She informed me that the person who was supposed to compute the charges for transportation of the luggage had not arrived and so I waited. At around 8:05 AM or thereabout, a lady by the name of Bridgit wearing a Kenya Railways uniform came and took pictures of my luggage, counted the items and sent them to her boss. She then called the said boss and she was told to charge Sh15,000.00. I said this was too much and was even above what could be charged by a pickup or a small lorry. They talked again and said Sh10,000.00 would be the minimum amount they could take. She then left and told me to go see her in her office when ready to pay. I was really confused. A security officer advised me to go try to negotiate with her because he knew that the cash charged on luggage doesn't go to Kenya Railways but it goes to the pockets of a few individuals (top officials of Kenya Railways). I went to her office and I could tell she was very senior from the way other employees were addressing her. When I asked for her office, a security officer took me there personally thinking that I was her visitor. Even the door was opened for me. She gave a sit and I told her I could only afford Sh4,000. She called the boss she had called earlier and they agreed to charge me Sh.8,000. When I told her that I didn't have such money, she said her hands were tied and she couldn't do anything else. The lady who had talked to me harshly also came to her office and wanted to know how much I had been charged. When she was told it was Kshs. 8,000.00, she said that was too little and I shouldn't expect any more reduction. She told me to take away my luggage and stop wasting their time if I didn't have the cash. These people were treating me like a criminal and yet I was a customer. Having limited options, I decided to pay. A cashier was sent to me and he wanted me to pay in cash. I said I had no cash and I could only pay using M-Pesa. I knew they wanted cash because it was their money and not for Kenya Railways. I insisted on M-Pesa and he wanted to get a number that I could send to but I told him that I was sure that Kenya Railways have a Safaricom till or a paybill. He then gave me a Paybill that was different from the one on the banner and am not sure if it is a legit paybill. He told me to write "Unbooked Luggage'' as the account number (why unbooked?). When I paid, the name of the Paybill came as Kenya Railways but someone should check if it is legit. I have attached receipts, the M-Pesa message and pictures of the items that were carried. This same cashier is the one that travelled with us on the train and he was charging customers even for small luggage. Some people on the train told me that he usually charges for everything. I noted that the receipt given for luggage is different from the one for travelling. The one for luggage is done from a book and the one for travelling is generated from an electronic gadget. I was then told to carry my items and load them onto the train. The train was parked quite far and I had to pay people to help me carry the items. We had to do it in such a rush because of time and some of my items broke. The train kept hooting even as I struggled to get everything in. On the train, I was also told to arrange my items which I did. I arrived at Naromoru at around 4 pm and I also had to pay some people to help me remove the luggage. I also had to hire another pickup to ferry my items home. If I had known that they would charge me that much, I would have just used a pick-up truck from Nairobi to my home and it would have been cheaper and quite easy. They took advantage of my situation after ensuring that the pick-up that I had gone with had left. I really plead with the Minister for Transport to come up with a schedule with charges for all household items like beds, sofa sets, tables, etc. Luggage charges should not be computed just by looking and should not be left to some few individuals. There should be a clear charter that should be used. Even on the train, people were really complaining about these charges. An official on the train advised me that next time if I want to pay less, I should take the items to any other station on the route like Githurai or Kasarani or Madaraka where those who will charge me do not ask for much. He meant that I should avoid the headquarters. It appeared I went to the big 'fish' instead of going to the smaller 'fish'. Surely, something needs to be done. Even if I do not get any refund, I pray that no other Kenyan will suffer at the hands of these officials. Kindly circulate widely. Below is the M-Pesa message that I received. Kenya Railways can confirm if it is legit using the M-Pesa transaction code. The Paybill I was given was different from the one on their banner but it still showed the name Kenya Railways after paying. But anything is possible in Kenya. The same should be checked; QKB1OXDGTV Confirmed. Ksh8,000.00 sent to KENYA RAILWAYS for account Unbooked Luggage on 11/11/22 at 8:16 AM. Samuel," the source writes.