Nairobi’s environmental office has put a price on vandalism. Anyone who helps nab culprits stealing the county’s new street dustbins will pocket Ksh5,000 cash, courtesy of Chief Officer for Environment Geofrey Mosiria.
The offer follows a night patrol near Kencom bus stop where guards caught a man carting away a chunk of a freshly installed metallic bin, likely destined for the scrap-metal yards. He was handed to county askaris and will be charged in court.
“Last night, we apprehended a young man who was caught looting county street dustbins. This serves as a stern warning to anyone involved in taking or vandalising public dustbins with the intent to sell them as scrap metal, you will not be spared,” Mosiria said.
The rectangular steel bins, deployed three weeks ago to curb litter along busy pavements, have quickly become hot targets. Their inner mesh liners fetch quick cash on the black market, undermining City Hall’s plan to keep the capital cleaner.
Mosiria, reportedly dipping into his own pocket for the reward, urged residents to treat public assets as community property. “Such individuals will face the full force of the law. Impunity must be stopped at all costs, and the protection of public resources is non-negotiable,” he added.
The county is also deploying guards around the CBD and warning traders not to dump commercial waste into the pedestrian bins. Anyone caught spitting or littering risks arrest under existing by-laws.
