Nicco Movers Sacco has secured a reprieve after the Transport Licensing Appeals Board halted the government's move to ground its entire fleet, providing relief to hundreds of drivers and workers.

🇰🇪 Breaking It Down

The Transport Licensing Appeals Board stepped in on Wednesday, suspending the National Transport and Safety Authority’s (NTSA) decision to revoke the sacco's Public Service Vehicle operator licence.

“The implementation, enforcement and/or execution of the respondent’s decision contained in the letter dated 9 June 2026 revoking the appellant’s PSV operator licence is hereby suspended pending the hearing and determination of this appeal or until further orders,” stated the tribunal.

The June 9 revocation followed the tragic death of Eugene Mutuku, a 19-year-old KMTC student who was pushed from a moving Nicco Movers matatu along Thika Road on June 4, 2026, over a disputed Ksh20 fare.

📌 What You Need to Know

In the case, NTSA had cited road safety concerns, regulatory non-compliance and fleet management failures as the reasons behind its tough decision to pull the plug on the sacco. Nonetheless, the tribunal found that the sacco had raised serious, arguable issues, including claims of procedural unfairness and denial of a fair hearing before the licence was taken away.

The board, led by its presiding members, also flagged concerns that the punishment may have been disproportionate and that NTSA might not have weighed mitigating circumstances before acting.

City Lawyer, Danstan Omari, who represented the Sacco, had painted a grim picture of the economic fallout, pointing to job losses, lost tax revenue and the broader social consequences of leaving hundreds unemployed.

NTSA, represented by counsel Mary Kihamba, defended the revocation, maintaining the authority had a duty to protect passengers and other road users from unsafe operators.

The tribunal acknowledged those safety concerns but ruled that grounding the sacco entirely, before a full hearing, risked causing harm that money alone could not easily fix.

The board permitted Nicco Movers to return its fleet to the road, but attached a firm condition that the sacco must file a detailed safety compliance plan within seven days.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke