The President must respect the court's decision on graffiti

Title: The President must respect the court's decision on graffiti Category: Opinion

When the High Court issued its ruling on matatu graffiti last year, many Kenyans interpreted it as a long-overdue reckoning with a transport culture that had drifted far beyond aesthetic eccentricity. The directive was clear: operators must remove imagery that is obscene, violent, or politically inflammatory from their vehicles. Yet months later, commuters boarding matatus along Nairobi's Thika Road or the congested Mombasa Road corridor can still encounter graphic artwork that would raise eyebrows in any public space.

President Ruto's apparent reluctance to enforce or publicly affirm the court's position places him in uncomfortable constitutional territory. Kenya's 2010 Constitution is among the most progressive on the continent, and Article 159 enshrines judicial authority as a co-equal arm of government. When the executive signals — whether through silence or tacit permissiveness — that certain rulings are optional, it chips away at the institutional architecture the constitution was designed to protect.

Matatu culture is genuinely woven into Kenya's urban identity. The minibuses have long served as rolling galleries, with artists from Eastlands and Kibera earning recognition for their elaborate designs. That creative tradition deserves space. But there is a meaningful distinction between vibrant street art celebrating Kenyan musicians or footballers and imagery that degrades women or glamorises gang violence, some of which has drawn documented complaints from passengers including schoolchildren.

The Matatu Owners Association has argued that enforcement would devastate livelihoods dependent on the expressive identity of their vehicles. That concern deserves a policy response, not judicial defiance. The president should direct the National Transport and Safety Authority to implement the ruling in full. Selective obedience to court orders is not a style of governance; it is a symptom of institutional decay.