The Nairobi City County administration has decided against taking any disciplinary action against an inspectorate officer(Kanjo) who was taken on an involuntary road trip by TikTok personality Gloria Ntazola after entering her vehicle while on duty.
The now-viral incident occurred when the ‘Kanjo’ officer approached Ms Ntazola’s vehicle and occupied the co-driver’s seat following an alleged parking violation.
But a frustrated Gloria locked the officer in the car and drove him from Jeevanje in Nairobi CBD to Kitengela, all while recording the confrontation. She insisted that she had not committed any offense that would justify the Kanjo askari entering her car.
On October 19, Ntazola took to her Instagram account to address the situation, saying her TikTok account had been taken down as a result of the incident.
“Hi guys, so they’ve taken down my account. I no longer have my TikTok account because of that incident with the city askari. That’s alright, but the guy entered my car forcefully without my permission. I was simply trying to park my car in town,” she said.
Adding: “And that wasn’t his first time. He’s done that to me several times, so I was just tired of him. I’m safe, I’m okay.”
On Monday, the Nairobi city county government indicated they had let the Kanjo officer off the hook.
Acting County Secretary, Mr. Patrick Analo said the traffic marshal officer acted in accordance with the established practices within Nairobi CBD to address traffic-related incidents.
“There is no action against the officer. The lady was wrong. He wanted to prevent the lady from double-parking but he became a bit argumentative,” Analo said as quoted by NTV.
He said that according to an incident report submitted to his office by the county security department, the officer attempted to prevent Ms. Ntazola from committing a traffic offense.
However, she allegedly became violent and was on the verge of fleeing when the officer entered her vehicle.
“Do you think our officer just did that out of nowhere? This is an experienced officer who had handled more than 200 cars on that same within the town.” The county official stated.
Analo explained that traffic marshals have been employing a similar approach to prevent traffic offenses. He claimed offenders typically commit an offense and attempt to escape, posing a risk of accidents if not addressed promptly.
The acting county sec. also voiced concerns about the security of the officer, saying the motorist abducted him.
“I don’t know what would have happened if she had decided to drop him at an unknown place. In fact, I’ve not seen the officer and I’m expecting to meet him today in my office. That was an act of abduction,” Analo said.
“As you can see(in the video), our officer was humble and sat patiently. He did not exchange words with the lady.”
Mr. Analo also emphasized that while traffic officers are not permitted to enter a vehicle without the owner’s permission, the county has its own mechanisms in place to address individuals found violating traffic regulations.
“The county is planning to meet with our traffic marshals to address such issues where culprits try to run away after committing an offence because we have several motorists including boda boda rider who usual run away after committing an offence.” He said.
