Passengers in Mandera Town. [Photo/Daily Nation]
Hundreds of Mandera non-local travelers have now resorted to using government vehicles following a boycott by local bus companies to ferry non-local people from the region.
The three bus companies operating in the region stopped booking non-local travelers following Al Shabaab threats on non-Muslims traveling using the buses.
Desperate non- local travelers are now asking for lifts from police trucks traveling to Nairobi via the Moyale route.
Mandera county commissioner Fredrick Shisia told KNA that the Mandera- Garissa route will only be opened to non-local travelers after security has been restored.
The bus company chairman Mohamed Bardad regretted the move but reiterated that his organization cannot risk peoples’ lives.
“We cannot expose our travelers to the dangers posed by the Al Shabaab militia group,” said Bardad.