Senate presses NTSA over new-generation number plate backlog
Key points
- Senate Roads Committee is probing NTSA delays on new-generation number plates after fees and registration are done.
- Senator Joe Nyutu wants pending totals as of 1 July 2026 by county, category and age of application.
- Senators also seek production capacity, modernisation plans and raw-material procurement detail.
- Side issues: delegated regulations Maanzo says lack proper scrutiny; importers stuck at Mombasa without plates (Kisang).
Motorists who already paid and finished registration still waiting for metal — that is the backlog the Senate Standing Committee on Roads and Transportation is now forcing onto the National Transport and Safety Authority’s desk, Eastleigh Voice reported.
Murang’a Senator Joe Nyutu asked NTSA to table pending applications as of 1 July 2026, broken down by county, vehicle category and how long each file has sat unprocessed. He also wants production capacity numbers, expansion or modernisation plans, timelines, and how raw materials for plate manufacture are procured — plus what the Ministry of Roads and Transport is doing to clear the queue.
Regulations, revenue and the port pile-up
Makueni Senator Daniel Maanzo widened the file: some NTSA regulations, he said, never faced proper parliamentary scrutiny, and the Delegated Legislation committee had recommended annulling three of them — yet plate-related rules were already being applied. Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka asked how money from motorist services, including speed-governor linked collections, is managed and who leads the authority through the mess.
Elgeyo Marakwet Senator William Kisang brought the importer’s view: cars from Japan, Dubai, Thailand and South Africa can sit in Mombasa ICD and CFS yards because plates never arrive, blocking legal release onto Kenyan roads and stacking storage costs.
What motorists should demand in writing
A public backlog dashboard, county-level SLA for plate release, and a stop to enforcement penalties caused solely by NTSA delay. Transport desk: News.
County revenue teams and dealers can file joint submissions with serial counts of stuck units. Parliament should set a return date for NTSA’s data dump and publish it. Without numbers, “we are working on it” remains a slogan while paid-up owners drive on temporary paper — or not at all.
Based on Eastleigh Voice reporting of Senate committee proceedings. NTSA circulars and official backlog tables control operational figures.
