By Shem Onderi
One seat may serve dozens of passengers in a single day.
That same seat can earn its owner a decent income,
Day after day,
For a lifetime.
No one can personalise a seat in a public van.
Also Read
The driver is paid for steering the van,
For picking up and dropping off passengers.
He is the eye of the van.
The conductor earns his share from the passengers.
The van relies on fares to repair itself.
The owner settles bills from the profits.
The van is, quite literally, run by its passengers.
The taxman collects from the same account,
While the mechanic feeds on spare parts,
And the pump attendant waits,
Knowing the tank will eventually run dry.
Inside the van, passengers engage in public talk.
A government spy sits quietly, recording conversations.
The ignorant spill secrets.
A single sneeze can spread flu.
Some passengers board with mud on their shoes,
Leaving it behind as they alight.
On rough terrain,
Passengers knock against one another’s shoulders.
Everything about the public van
Is public.
