End of the road for custom-made number plates

With more Kenyans owning cars nowadays, another class has emerged that is keen to stand out from the crowd when driving on the roads.Cruising city streets in a vehicle fixed with number plates bearing one’s name would surely turn heads, because to many Kenyans, it signifies that the one behind the steering wheel is a person of means.Word in the streets is that custom-made registration number plates is an expensive undertaking, attracting up to Sh300,000 per year above the normal registration fee charged by Kenya Revenue Authority.But unknown to many Kenyans, KRA has never issued those kind of number plates and thus asked the police to arrest those breaking the law.Days after Nairobi police chief Antony Kibuchi ordered his officers to track down the cars, a top of the range vehicle, a Hummer that bore a plate inscribed MARIGA 17, was impounded.It is owned by international footballer McDonald Mariga. His younger brother who was driving it around Kilimani area was arrested.Registrar of motor vehicles at KRA Francis Meja said having personalised number plates is illegal.

Traffic Act

“Section 12 of the Traffic Act was amended, making a provision for personalised registration number plates. The amendment is not operational, because the regulations were never gazetted,” he said.The gazette notice is supposed be published by the Transport minister. Mr Meja added: “The Act also prohibits anybody from manufacturing number plates without the authority of the registrar...Click here