In Kenya, boda riders don’t have the best reputation when accidents they are involved in occur, leading to scratched vehicle paint and dents.

Data collected across the country revealed that between 2018 and 2023, out of 24,312 deaths due to road accidents, 8,432 involved motorcycles.

Despite the boda industry’s support to the Kenyan economy in a large way, with a huge chunk of riders being the youth, often, they do not own up when they make conventional mistakes on the road.

Unlike in Kenya, there was a noteworthy incident involving a boda boda rider from neighbouring Uganda. On Jinja Road, a Land Cruiser owner and a boda boda rider were involved in a minor accident.

During a traffic snarlup, the rider lost control of his bike while ferrying some foodstuff. This resulted in a dent in the high-end luxury vehicle, leaving him rider at the mercy of the Toyota Prado owner.

Aware of his mistake at the scene, the boda rider remained collected as the owner of the Land Cruiser got out of his vehicle to assess the damage.

According to a Ugandan publication, the boda rider admitted to the mistake and offered to help the Land Cruiser owner with the necessary repairs.

A man of little means, the humble rider reached into his pockets and forked out the little he had at the moment, Sh. 345 (UGx 10,000), despite knowing that the body repair would cost more than he could afford.

However, the car owner refused to accept the money and insisted that the boda rider accompany him to a mechanic repair shop, where he would cover all the repair costs.

As documented by the Ugandan publication Daily Monitor, the incident sparked numerous social media reactions regarding how the Toyota Prado driver could have best handled the situation.

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Some argued that the car owner should have been lenient and allowed the man to continue his journey, while others believed that the rider needed to take accountability and serve as a lesson for other unruly riders.

Here are some of the reactions:

Norah Acam: By the time that boda boda man pulled the ka 10k, it means that he was really sorry for what happened. That would have been enough for the driver to let him go.

Nuru Tindi Seje: It’s difficult to be fair here. Whereas the Bodaman could be deserving of our unhelpful sympathy, if you’ve driven there you may know how they tend to breach all the traffic rules. The driver too perhaps is an employee(Looks like a company car)who will be held accountable for the damage to the car. Let’s respect traffic rules.

KingDavid Senior: The moment that guy pulled out 10k, It was enough reason to forgive him

Ssalongo Wana Moses: It’s absurd but they should change their ways of riding. It’s too reckless.

Oscar Kevi: The driver was lucky the Boda guy didn’t call his mates. Otherwise the story would be different. Good gesture to take responsibility

Tumusiime Moses Kayombya: He would have forgiven him despite the fact that he accepted fault and pulled out what he had in the pocket sometimes let’s not always think about material things more and end up forgetting about humanity and kindness