Murkomen Gives NTSA 2-Week Ultimatum After Impromptu Visit

Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kipchumba Murkomen on Friday, September 22 ordered the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to clear the backlog in the printing of Driving Licences, logbooks and digital number plates within two weeks.

In a statement, the CS expressed his discontent at seeing Kenyans inconvenienced, suffer, and even lose job opportunities due to lack of driving licences caused by artificial delays in processing and issuance of Driving Licences.

He revealed that over 50,000 driving licence applications remained unprocessed, some going as far back as September 2022, consequently directing NTSA to reduce the backlog in two weeks.

Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen at NTSA Headquarters at Upperhill, Nairobi on September 22, 2023. /KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN

"It is sad to note that over 50,000 Driving Licence applications, some dating back to September 2022, are yet to be processed.

"I have given NTSA two weeks to clear this backlog, notify Kenyans of their nearest collection points, and put in place the necessary mechanisms to speed up the turnaround time for processing and issuance of DLs, logbooks and digital number plates," he stated.

Affirming that President William Ruto's government was elected with the mandate of improving service delivery as well as the lives of Kenyans from the bottom to the top, Murkomen committed to ridding government institutions of cartels he claimed were frustrating government services.

"I will therefore spare no effort in dismantling existing cartels who are perpetuating corruption in these institutions and pushing the Agencies, within my Ministry, who are responsible for dispensing critical services to Kenyans to do so professionally, transparently and expeditiously," he vowed.

The CS's statement came following his impromptu visit to the NTSA Inspection Centre in Likoni Road and the Headquarters in Upper Hill on Friday afternoon.

One of the motorists captured in a video seen by Viral Tea approached Murkomen and complained to him of the situation at the NTSA offices, lamenting that he was not getting the prompt service like other users.

Clutching the old version of his number plate, the motorist complained that he had received a text message from NTSA informing him to collect the Digital Number Plate but upon arrival, he was told that it was not ready for collection.

The motorist further complained that he had received the same instructions two weeks before, and thus was not able to collect the digital number plate.

"We cannot continue working like this," he said while showing Murkomen the old number plate he had carried with him.

The motorist voiced the frustrations of several of his counterparts over delayed services at NTSA offices, some even taking to social media to appeal to government bodies to intervene.

The issues ranged from a lack of response from NTSA on queries as well as delays in driver's licenses and second-generation number plate collection.