Residents of Ahero town in Kisumu county have raised an alarm over the increasing number of street children in the area.
Speaking to this Hivisasa writer on Tuesday, the residents claimed that the children are interfering with their normal operations. The children have now turned shops and food joints verandas into their homes.
The menace of street children in the town has reached a point whereby the traders who are most affected are now calling on the parents of the street children who are able to avoid their responsibilities and take care of them.
“Operating has become difficult due to street children. We are calling on the relevant parties to address the situation,” said Priscah Chemule, a kiosk operator in the town.
Hotel owners say that the children hang around their premises which sometimes scares away potential customers.
“Over meal times, we can expect anything, either profit or loss considering the movement of these children. Customers shy away due to these children,”said Cprian Olum , a hotel owner.
They allegedly enter the hotels sometimes to beg for food and also scramble for the leftovers.
The residents attributed the increase in street children to the fast growing nature of the town whereby some of the children run away from their homes come to look for opportunities in the town.