Police in Kampala Metropolitan area on Thursday impounded over 171 taxis and 489 motorcycles for defying the presidential directive.
In the struggle to avert the rapid spreading of the COVID 19 disease caused by Coronavirus, on Wednesday President Yoweri Museveni said that government is not willing to take more chances thus opting to suspend all taxis, coasters, buses, passenger trains, tuk-tuks and Boda Bodas for 14 days.
Museveni said only private cars with less than three people will be allowed to move.
However, to some taxi drivers and Bodaboda raiders, the directives sounded like nothing to them and on Thursday morning they embarked on working as business as usual which forced Police to arrest them.
According to the Kampala Metropolitan area spokesperson, Patrick Onyango, Police was forced to carry out an operation purposely to enforce the Presidential directives in order to avoid the spreading of the disease.
The enforcement involved deployments in strategic areas, along all the routes, leading to the city centre, markets, taxi and bus terminals and setting checkpoints.
Onyango said that although the majority of the population adhered to the directives there are some indisciplined people who attempted to defy the orders.
“We decided to impound their motor vehicles, motorcycles and arrested those violating the directives.
In this operation, by 1600 hours, we had impounded 171 motor vehicles (mostly taxis), 489 motorcycles and arrested 10 suspects. The suspects who were arrested, they were violent and aggressive towards Police Officers during the arrest,” he said.
He added that the impounded motor vehicles, motorcycles and suspects are at various Police Stations in KMP.
Onyango confirmed that generally, apart from the few minor highlighted incidents, Kampala Metropolitan area is peaceful and businesses in the various cleared places are going on smoothly. He, however, alluded that the operation to enforce the presidential directive will continue.
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