The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) has appealed to its members not to charge unapproved lorry fares as proposed by some private transport operators which takes effect on Monday, May 17, 2021.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Union, Abass Ibrahim Morro noted that leaders of the Union are working closely with authorities at the Transport Ministry to arrive at the right percentage increment for new fares.
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“We plead with our drivers not to increase fares for any reason. We have not increased the fares and we tell them to be patient as we work on the approved fares which will be released soon”, he said.
The GPRTU which is a law abiding entity insisted “there are rules in Ghana and if anyone does anything they want, we will always have problems. As car owners we will all be glad if lorry fares are increased but we need to do it the right way”.
In an interview with Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning Show aired on e.TVGhana and Happy98.9FM, Abass describing the GPRTU as one which thinks about both its members and passengers said, “before we increase fares we must dialogue with the government and agree by what percentage we can increase fares. Because the government is a listening one, it will make sure we all benefit”.
The GPRTU which is at the last stage of negotiations with the government assured its members that the agreed upon percentage increase of lorry fares will be arrived at by close of the week and take effect the week after.
Background
Private transport operators in the country have agreed to increase transport fares by 20%.
This increment, they say, takes effect on Monday, May 17, 2021.
The development comes after a series of engagements among members of the Ghana Committed Drivers Association, International Drivers Road Transport Union, Truth Drivers Union and the Concerned Drivers Association.
A joint statement issued by the operators said the increment has been necessitated by different factors including new taxes on fuel, the cost of vehicle spare parts and charges levied by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA).
Portions of the statement released on Sunday May 16, 2021 read:
“A gallon of fuel which used to be sold at the pump for GHC 24.52 pesewas is now sold at GHC 27.22 pesewas. Also, prices of spare parts and DVLA charges have shot up considerably. With these developments, if we delay any further in increasing lorry fares by at least 20%, our transport business will collapse.
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It is our considered view that we will only go by the decision to increase lorry fares twice a year if the powers that be can also ensure that prices of petroleum products and spare parts are not increased in the course of every year so as to guarantee stable prices and lorry fares,” they stated.
“It must interest the general public to note that the GPRTU for some time now has pulled out of the Council and now joined the TUC and has since been negotiating with the government for an increase in lorry fares on its own. It has even gone ahead to put it in its constitution, Article 2 (k). It will therefore be difficult for us to keep waiting for them to conclude negotiations on the percentage of increase in lorry fares,” the Private transport operators noted.
By: Joel Sanco
