Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir is facing mounting criticism from Kenyans following a spate of fatal accidents that have claimed more than 40 lives since the start of August.
In the latest incidents, an AMREF plane crashed in Mwihoko shortly after taking off from Wilson Airport, killing six people, including four medics on board. Just days earlier, a 51-seater bus ferrying mourners along the Kisumu–Kakamega highway crashed, leaving at least 25 dead.
Other tragedies include a cargo train ramming into a Kenya Pipeline Company staff bus in Naivasha, killing eight employees, and a school bus crash in Meru that left several students and teachers injured. On August 6, popular DJ Darious of Radio Maisha and KTN lost both parents in a head-on collision along the Bomet–Nakuru highway.
Despite the wave of accidents, Chirchir has remained largely silent, issuing only brief condolence messages — a move that has drawn backlash from the public. Many Kenyans have taken to social media questioning his absence and calling for urgent measures to improve road safety.
“The number of accidents happening this month is alarming,” wrote one X user. Another remarked, “Only the president has acted even before the Transport CS, yet he should have been the first.”
The Ministry of Roads and Transport is yet to announce any new safety directives as calls grow for stronger enforcement of traffic laws and urgent national road safety interventions.
