City Affairs

Motion to ban street parties in Nairobi estates presented to assembly

City Hall in Nairobi. (Photo: Handout)

By Barack Oduor | Tuesday, March 5, 2024

The Makongeni ward representative claims that the street parties and loud Reggae music in residential areas have also bred immorality within the estates.

The Nairobi County Assembly on Tuesday received a petition seeking to ban all street parties in residential estates within the city.

The petition was tabled by County Assembly Majority Leader Peter Imwatok who says the street parties and loud music in residential areas have attracted criminals and deprived residents of peace.

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The Makongeni ward representative claims that the street parties and loud Reggae music in residential areas have also bred immorality within the estates.

"In the recent past, there has been a growing trend in the city where individuals have organised street parties in the form of reggae music sessions in residential areas which attract both the youth and school going children, concerned that, these street parties and reggae sessions are characterised by all manner of criminal acts and immoral activities," wrote a motion paper by the leader to the assembly speaker Ken Ng'ondi.

According to Imwatok, incidences of rampant drug abuse and mugging of residents have been witnessed as a result of the street music parties.

He further notes that there has been increased lawlessness orchestrated by the uncontrolled parties.

Among his reasons for having the parties stopped include nonperformance by learners in schools and moral decay among the youth.

"These reggae sessions have largely contributed to nonperformance in schools and moral decay among the youth; now therefore, this assembly resolves that the county executive bans all street parties and reggae sessions in residential areas and develops and submits to this assembly regulation to govern such parties," he adds.

Last year, Governor Johnson Sakaja ordered night operations in bars and clubs that did not follow laid down procedures for operating at night.

Sakaja said that while the county government will strictly enforce the law on the sale of liquor and operations of bars and nightclubs, this should be done in a manner to achieve the intended goal without harassment.

"What good does it do to raid clubs, arrest the DJ, confiscate his equipment and send clients scampering? This is not the goal. The goal is to ensure that the proprietors follow the law," the Governor said.