Bars in Nakuru town will remain closed on Monday and Tuesday this week to ensure that those who flock the joints don't fail to participate in the elections.
The Nakuru Bar Owners association made the resolution during their meeting held at a Nakuru hotel where they agreed to take the responsibility of ensuring people don't go voting while drunk.
"The bar owners resolved that the joints will be closed on Monday morning up and until Tuesday evening after the elections are complete," said George Kihara, the proprietor of popular Club Utugi located in Nakuru's Central Business District.
He added that the bar owners agreed to close down to ensure that their staff who have registered as voters in and outside Nakuru County have enough time to travel to places where they will cast their votes.
"We have also given a two day off to our workers to ensure their job doesn’t hinder them from casting their votes. The time will be enough for those who will have to travel outside the county," said Kihara.
He added that the bars will be reopened on Tuesday evening after the polls to give the residents a chance to follow on the proceedings through the mainstream media.
This will however be under restrictions that every customer who is a registered voter will have to show the ink mark on their fingers as proof that they voted.
"We encourage everyone who is a registered voter to turn up for the polls and vote for their favourite candidate. On Tuesday only customers who shall have proof they voted shall be served in the bars," said Kihara.
A crosscheck in bars within Nakuru town revealed most of them had notices on walls urging the customers to vote first for them to be served.
Interviewed customers appreciated the move while some opposed it.
"It was very wise for the bar owners to close down their businesses on the voting day. Some of us may come for a drink due to long queues at polling stations and forget to go and vote," said John Mwangi who travelled from Nairobi to vote in Nakuru.
Kenyans took to social media in protest after the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse (NACADA) CEO Victor Okioma directed bar owners to close down their businesses a week to elections while being interviewed on a local TV station earlier in June.
The Standard Group Plc is a
multi-media organization with investments in media platforms spanning newspaper
print operations, television, radio broadcasting, digital and online services. The
Standard Group is recognized as a leading multi-media house in Kenya with a key
influence in matters of national and international interest.
join