Commercial sex workers in Thika have asked the county government to collect taxes from them.
They said their numbers have increased over years and taxes collected from them may guarantee the county government a larger sum of money to employ more officers.
Speaking during the international day against violence to sex workers, Susan Nduta said that the sex industry has a lot of people who earn a lot and they are willing to pay taxes if they will not be harassed.
“The county government can employ more than 100 people with the money we will pay as taxes, so long as they protect our business. When our business is fine you are also guaranteed a big harvest,” Nduta, a sex worker said.
She argued that the county government should be able to protect them and protect their rights being violated.
These remarks were also seconded by their spokesman Barrack Richards Ondiek who said that the fines they pay once they are arrested could be paid to the county government as taxes.
The sex workers in Thika according to the latest statistics collected from two centres shows that more than 4,500 women sex workers and 200 male have been served by university of Nairobi centre and more than 6,000 female, 319 male and 20 injection drug users have passed through Wapate Group Thika.