KIGALI - Over 400 vendors and hawkers who were operating from Remera Taxi Park were on Tuesday morning evicted from the park and their stalls demolished.

They were evicted by the police on the orders of the park officials and the Executive Committee of Gasabo District.

In a interview with The New Times the police spokesperson Eric Kayiranga said that the vendors were evicted because of some cases involving robbery and drug abuse within the taxi park.

"The vendors were suspected to be behind those bad acts” said Kayiranga.

"We decided to evict them because they were involved in robbery and drug abuse in the taxi park”.

The chairman of the vendors, only identified as Sunday told, The New Times that the vendors were given a deadline of February 2 to have vacated the park because the taxi park authorities wanted to do a general cleaning in the tax park.

Godfrey Ngabo the chairperson of Remera Taxi Park said that the vendors were inconveniencing the passengers therefore it was deemed necessary to reduce commotion in the tax park.

But the vendors violently opposed the move to be evicted claiming they were relocated somewhere where they said can’t operate from.

"I got the loan of 500,000 Rwf from Cogear Bank which I invested in my business, now I have been chased from where I used to operate from. Where do they expect me to get the money to pay back” asked Emmanuel Hakizimaana, one of the vendors.

The vendors are complaining that they paid 12,000 Rfw for the uniform which they were wearing while conducting their business and on top of paying 500 Rfw for rubbish collection.

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