Within three months, the Nation has written one story twice, both times a naïve account of a logistical impracticality, and nobody at Kimathi Street has caught it.
The first time, the Nation ran this headline last November 9: “Electric matatus set to drive diesel version off the roads.”
The story by Brian Ambani started out with a tease. “ The next time you board a matatu to the Nairobi central business district,” the story said, “it could be using electricity rather than diesel.”
Why? Because a start-up company called BasiGo has raised Sh100 million to locally assemble electric 25- and 36-seater public transport buses.
It added that “local bus operators for the pilot testing have already been picked.”
The entire story quoted only one source, the company CEO. Yup, a full story filled with “he said”. Zero evidence of independent research.
The second time, the paper boldly repeated in a January 20 headline: “Fully electric bus to shove diesel version off the road.”
This story, by the same author, equally started off with a bold announcement: “Swedish electric vehicle maker Opibus has introduced the first fully electric bus in Kenya, which it says can be mass-produced by the end of next year.”
The magic bus will be “made available for sale mid this year.”
Where will it run? On Kenyan roads, we assume. And, wait for it, the firm has received an order of 10 buses, all arriving this year.
Oh, and don’t forget what we just said: mass production starts next year. Right here in the Republic of Kenya, for Sh11.35 million a pop. Fine.
Sources for this story? Again, only one: the company’s chief strategy and marketing officer.
What’s wrong with these stories? Besides lack of basic journalistic ingredients (multiple sourcing, evidence of independent research, completeness, balance, etcetera), they’re just naïve. That’s what.
Both stories focused on describing a product and its cost. They failed to address the feasibility, the practicality, of what the headlines promised.
A simple question: does Kenya have the infrastructure for electric-powered public transport that can be rolled out “in mass” by end of next year? No.
Okay, at least in the second story the author said that the buses would be initially deployed in Nairobi, where charging points will be installed. And that the buses would be fully charged within one hour.
For this piece of valuable info, the story cited a Public Transport Project Coordinator called Dennis Wakaba. What office is that? Where is it?
But this info from an obscure officer barely scratched the surface.
How much electricity is needed to run the buses and matatus? Does Kenya have it? How long does it take to build charging stations? Where will these charging stations go? Who will fund them? Who will regulate them? Is policy in place? Technical personnel? How far will the buses run on a full charge? What happens if a fully electric matatu runs out of juice in a three-hour traffic jam on Jogoo Road?
A more practical question: How will the 10 undisclosed clients who already ordered the electric buses run them? Does anybody seriously believe that a bus company will shell out Sh11 million-times-ten on, what, a gamble?
And nobody at Kimathi Street thought about these questions in three months?
