The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) CEO Victor Okioma has expressed concern over the failure of bars to observe the required operating hours.
Okioma while speaking on Citizen TV on Wednesday said despite the national law stipulating that bars should operate from 5 pm to 11 pm during weekdays, there are establishments that begin operations as early as 8 am.
“We have had cases where bars are opening at 8 am and you ask yourself, at 8 am somebody is already walking into the bar instead of going to work,” Okioma said.
According to Okioma, the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) has collaborated with counties, leading to some changes, but added that limiting access to alcohol abuse requires intervention as it remains a persistent issue.
Also Read: ChatGPT Owner Launches Tool to Detect AI-Generated Text
“We have in the law stated that bars should open only at 5 pm during working days and close at 11 pm but we have seen bars opening as early as 8 am and will close when the last person leaves those are issues of aces that need to be addressed,” he said.
The issues of bars have become a matter with Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja being on the receiving end in recent weeks after he ordered the closure of bars near residential areas.
Recently, deputy President Rigathi Gachagua ordered administrators in the Mt Kenya region to reduce the number of alcohol-selling outlets.