Truck drivers want Uganda services halted in Covid row
Friday, May 29, 2020 0:01
By STANLEY NGOTHO
One of the truck drivers stuck in a traffic gridlock on the road to Malaba border point on May 27.
PHOTO | TONNY OMONDI
A union representing long-distance truck drivers has called for the suspension of services to Uganda, putting at stake up to 70 percent of transit cargo at the Mombasa port.
Kenya Long Distance Truck Drivers Union general-secretary Nicholas Mbugua said the 34,000 members would withhold their services until officials addressed stigma and harassment in the enforcement of Covid-19 containment measures.
We demand to be guaranteed the safety of our drivers in Uganda,” said Mr Mbugua who was accompanied by Central Organisation of Trade Union officials.
An average of 1,200 truck drivers cross into Uganda through Malaba every daily while 800 others enter the landlocked country through the Busia border in any normal day.
