Affrontement près de Garissa – 12 juillet 2011

Bura police boss injured in matatu riots

kbc.co.ke

Tue, Jul 12, 2011

Bura OCPD was on Tuesday morning seriously injured as clashes between rival matatu operators on the busy Garissa – Nairobi highway at Modogo area escalated.

The OCPD Gabriel Okutoyi was attacked as he tried to quell the skirmishes. His vehicle, a police land cruiser was also set ablaze by the rowdy youths.

According to the Deputy PPO Phillip Ndolo, the rioting mobs in Magodo had barricaded the highway for the second day disrupting transport in the area.

The Bura OCPD was seriously injured as he moved in with a contingent of police officers to quell the clashes.

Ndolo said the officer who is admitted at Garissa Provincial Hospital would be airlifted to Nairobi for treatment adding that he is in stable condition.

The Matatu operators took to the streets after a new sacco was created to oversee the operations of the route managed by Garissa – Madogo sacco.

The otherwise peaceful demonstration that started Monday turned ugly when Madogo OCS allegedly arrested Madogo Matatu Association chairman Salim Ali Madei alongside seven other members.

Madei claimed that operators from the new sacco attacked and injured several of their members before denying them access to their designated Garissa town stage.

In reprisal, the Madogo Matatu operators blocked the Garissa Sacco members from operating on the Madogo route prompting the riots. Read more…