Taliban takeover frees vendors from illegal payments

KABUL (Pajhwok): Pajhwok Afghan News findings show that in the past, police and municipality officials would collect a total of 20 million afghanis in bribes from street vendors in Kabul, but the practice has ceased to exist.

Taliban took over Kabul on August 15. Pajhwok on the same day published a report that police and municipality officials illegal took at least 20 million afghanis a day from street vendors in Kabul.

According to the report, there are about 500,000 vendors in Kabul.

Now the vendors say they do not pay bribes anyone and previously if they refused to pay money, they were not allowed to work.

Based on figures included in the report, Pajhwok estimated that a total of around 20 million afghanis would go to private pockets every day.

After 20 days of the report, Pajhwok once again interviewed dozens of vendors in Mairwais Maidan, Pul-i-Bagh Omomi, Timur Shahi, DehAfghanan and Cinama-i-Pamir area of Kabul city and asked them about the payment of bribe and all of them said now the problem had been resolved and they pay no one currently.

Mustafa, who sells fruits in the Mirwais Maidan area, said on one had asked him for money since the Taliban took control of Kabul.

He said police and municipality employees would demand up to 100 afghanis from each vendor a day.

Ali Reza, who carries people’s goods on his handcart, said: “By the grace of Allah (swt) I have not seen anyone to come and take money under different excuses.”

In the past, he said, street vendors in each area would pay money to police and municipality officials.

Mohammad Safa, another vendor in Cinama-i-Pamir area, said in the past, agents would collect 50 afghanis a day from each vendor and then they would pay the money to police and municipality officials in order to allow their business.

“Since the Islamic Emirate has come, so far no one has come to us to ask for money, we are happy that such things disappeared from our county…. No one currently works for anyone, everybody does their job,” he said.

Abdul Shakoor, a street vendor in DehAfghanan area of Kabul, said no one was taking money from anyone now, but unemployment had increased and their business deteriorated.

He said the Taliban had told vendors not to pay to anyone illegally.

Suhrab, another vendor in the Timur Shahi area of Kabul, said no one was taking money from them now and hoped the Taliban would allow them to do business without charges.

Mohammad Reza, a vendor in the Pul-i-Bagh Omomi area of Kabul said: “A lot has changed now, the government used to take money from us, but now the illegal practice has stopped.”

Pajhwok spoke to many of other vendors in Kabul and all of them said that they had not been asked for a single penny since the past 20 days and they were happy with their business currently.

In an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News on Monday, the new acting mayor of Kabul, HamdullahNomani, said special places for vendors would be considered in order to sell their goods without creating traffic snarls.

He said that the vendors should pay money to no one and if anyone sought money from them, it would be a “thief”.

“We don’t pay attention to the things that cause a controversy, we will have an organization for the vendors so that they can earn their living,” he added.

sa/ma