Small-scale traders in Uhuru Market along Jogoo Road are counting losses after their stalls were demolished.
The market structures were flattened on the night of Sunday, March 8, by bulldozers and excavators.
The demolitions in Uhuru Market followed an eviction notice issued by the Nairobi City County government.
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The county gave the traders a 72-hour ultimatum to vacate the premises, failure to which it will proceed to demolish their stalls.
Photos and videos of the aftermath of the demolitions showed several stalls destroyed, with traders digging through debris to salvage their property.
On Friday, March 6, the Uhuru Market traders staged demonstrations and barricaded Jogoo Road, protesting against the eviction notice.
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The traders faulted the Nairobi County administration for failing to give them an alternative space to conduct their business.
Police officers were deployed to the scene to disperse protesters and clear bonfires along the busy highway.
This comes days after the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) demolished structures erected along the road reserve in Roysambu along the Thika Superhighway.
The authority carried out the demolitions on the night of Wednesday, March 4, and targeted stalls that encroached on the road reserve.
KeNHA had issued a notice to traders in Roysambu to vacate the road reserve.
In the notice dated Monday, January 9, the authority directed roadside traders operating at Roysambu in both directions to vacate within seven days.
“Kenya National Highways Authority wishes to notify all roadside traders along the Thika Superhighway at the Roysambu (Both directions) and Githurai (Nairobi direction) sections to clear their wares from the road reserve within seven (7) days of this notice,” the notice read.
On February 18, KeNHA also carried out demolitions in Githurai 45, leaving several traders who had erected structures on the road reserve counting losses.
Police officers were also deployed to the area to provide security and oversee the demolition of the roadside structures.
KeNHA explained that the structures had created safety concerns in the busy market area, contributing to accidents over time.
