Malawi Coalition of Kabaza and Stakeholders Associations (Macokasa) has asked the police to stop fining errant motorcycle taxi (kabaza) operators and instead only release their motorcycles upon full compliance with road traffic regulations.
Macokasa’s position comes after police impounded at least 460 motorcycles since last week with Blantyre City topping the list, seizing 199 motorcycles during the period. Of these, 127 were impounded yesterday alone for various traffic offences in the central business district and Soche Township.
However, The Nation established that some of the motorcycles were being released after the owners paid various fines to police.
Macokasa chairperson Moses Mwalabu in an interview yesterday said the association wants to bring sanity to kabaza operations and reduce robberies and road accidents.
He said in an interview yesterday: “Many of them are dying on the roads because of ignorance of the regulations; they have to go and learn.
“Depending on the offences, most of them are being fined between K300 000 and K500 000 which is enough to register a bike and get a licence.”
He said Macokasa would want the motorcycles released after they comply with all the requirements, including registering the motorcycle, obtaining a riding licence and having two crash helmets, one for the rider and another for a passenger.
Earlier yesterday, there was a brief standoff between police and kabaza operators after some operators stormed Blantyre Police Station, leading to two arrests.
Blantyre Police Station officer-in-charge Davie Chilalire said they had confiscated more than 62 motorcycles after distributing leaflets the previous day informing operators to adhere to road regulations.
“This [the regulations] includes having crash helmets, licences and carrying the right number of people. We are doing all this to prevent road accidents,” he said.
Soche Police spokesperson Aaron Chilala said they had confiscated 55 motorcycles yesterday for committing various traffic offences.
The Nation has established that although the joint operation being carried out by the police, Directorate of Road Traffic Safety Services and Macokasa is a national operation, some districts are yet to fully enforce the regulations.
To date, 70 kabazas were impounded in Lilongwe City; Karonga District recorded 46, Kasungu 40, Salima 28, Nkhotakota 23, Nkhata Bay 22, Ntchisi 20 and Chitipa 16.
National Police spokesperson Gladys Chiwaula asked for more time before giving national consolidated figures of the motorcycles confiscated so far while Road Traffic spokesperson Stanley Nkhondoyachepa asked for a questionnaire and was yet to respond by press time.
Malawi Police data show that about 814 road accidents involving kabaza were recorded in 2025, claiming 162 lives and causing 652 injuries.
