Mombasa County administration, led by Governor Abdulswammad Nassir, on Saturday, May 18, announced that Shops selling miraa and muguka near schools, mosques and churches will be shut down.
“No one will be allowed to sell miraa or muguka outside the schools. If you want to do the business, sell them to adults and do it far away from schools. If a 16 or 17-year-old child is able to get something worth KSh20 which has negative effect on them, then I will be forced to personally intervene,” the governor said.
He further stated that the county seeks to protect learners from drug addiction. “If you must do the muguka business, do it in the right place. We should not expose our children to such stimulants. We want them to be involved in education and digital literacy programmes,” he added. All those who will be caught selling the stimulant to learners will be arrested and charged in court.
READ ALSO:
This is after Nassir and Embu County Governor Cecily Mbarire formed a special committee due to the growing concern of learners getting addicted to the stimulant.
“We are also cognizant of the moral need to protect our children from the consumption of this product which is a stimulant just like alcohol. We must ensure that it is only consumed by adults who can make reasonable and objective choices,” said Mbarire.
In the new regulations, fronted on May 13, persons transporting the crop were directed to ensure they have licenses and not to carry passengers while conducting their businesses.
The governor also made a request to those working in the county’s public transport sector to avoid using the plants while working. He insisted that miraa should be used when one isn’t working. “If you’re a matatu or a tuk-tuk driver as well as a boda boda rider when you decide to start chewing miraa at 7am then you are creating a problem. We are not doing this because we hate you but because we like you,” he stated.
The new regulations showed that the county retains the cess charge at KSh80,000 per lorry. Meru Senator Kathuri Murungi led other leaders in embracing the new regulations and advocates for the cess charges to be lowered to KSh60,000.
By Frank Mugwe
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
