By Winnie Kabintie

A video that has gone viral of a Nairobian who confronted city council askaris on Thursday evening for impounding his car way past the 4 pm deadline has revealed that most Nairobians are not informed on the city by-laws.

As the Kenya Forum commends the Nairobians identified as Derrick Mbugua for confronting impunity we also take note of the fact that, going by the comments shared on the video, majority of Nairobians acknowledged that they were not aware that they should not pay for parking fees after 4 pm, talk of “sincere ignorance”!

As a common saying goes; “Knowledge is power” and this ignorance reminds me of a Kenyan friend, who is based in Canada and a few years back while on Christmas holiday here paid a bribe of sh 7,000 to council askaris after they caught him on phone while crossing the road, an offence that attracts sh 5,000 fine.

He wasn’t aware of the offence and the legal fine so when the askaris told him the offence attracts ash 20,000 fine, he fell for it.

Among the many cases brought before the City’s Magistrate Court, in city hall, a good number of them are for offenses relating to traffic Act, non-payment of parking fees, hawking illegally and general nuisance By-laws.

Well, in the spirit of informing you our dear reader, below are some of the common city bylaws and traffic offenses that are likely to land you in City Hall courts.

• Spitting on any footpath is a crime that can attract a fine of Sh 2,000 or three months in prison and blowing your nose aimlessly other than into any suitable clothe or tissue might land you in trouble as well.
• If you love your cigar then you need to take it slow because smoking in public other than in the designated smoking zones is a crime.
• Spitting on any footpath is a crime that can attract a fine of Sh 2,000 or three months in prison and blowing your nose aimlessly other than into any suitable clothe or tissue might land you in trouble as well.
• Carry a plastic bag measuring less than 30 microns. The fine for carrying 10-micron plastic bags is Sh2,000 or six months in prison.
• Keeping a dog older than four months without a license is illegal and attracts a Sh2,000 fine.
• crossing the roads in Nairobi when traffic lights are on red mode attracts a Sh10, 000 fine.
• Willfully annoy or interfere in any way with the privacy of any other person using a public toilet.
• In case you are using a public vehicle, it’s also illegal to board a vehicle or alight from non-designated areas.