Daladala drivers laugh off Sumatra plans on licences

BabuK · 2011-12-29T22:01:43+00:00

Daladala drivers in Dar es Salaam yesterday dismissed Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authoritys (SUMATRA) plan to revoke their driving licenses, for alleged violation of transport rules and regulations. They also rejected the regulators proposal that would require bus owners to take custody of the licenses in a bid to monitor the drivers behaviour on the road. The reactions follow a survey by this paper, aimed at checking dirty tricks employed by some greedy Daladala drivers and touts who make commuters pay more than what Sumatra has set as fares on some routes in Dar es Salaam. Sumatras Public Affairs Manager, David Mziray said revoking drivers licenses was one of practical measures to stop them from violating rules and regulations governing public transport services. We want bus owners to be the custodians of their licenses in a bid to monitor them closely, said Mziray in an exclusive interview. But daladala drivers yesterday described the proposed revoking of their licenses and submitting the documents to the employers as unfair and unjust. John Msechu, a Mwenge-Kariakoo bus driver said: For sure I am not be ready to hand over my document, which I struggled so hard to obtainall I can advise the authority is to find another option. He advised Sumatra to hold talks with Dar es Salaam Commuter Bus Association (DARCOBOA) and then let our association take our views before the exercise gets implemented. Juma Rashid, a Kimara-Kawe driver noted that licenses are personal, so it does not make sense for any driver to hand over his own property to someone else, even if that person is his boss. He admitted that there have been some msibehaving drivers and touts who cash in on the shortage of transport in some routes by making commuters pay more than the set fares. There is a penalty for this. I have once experienced it and had to face the consequences by paying, explained Rashid. They should come out with a better idea than this one, which undermines us more, given that we are working under difficult conditions. As it is some of the owners are not friendly, noted Peter Obedi, a Mwenge-Mbezi driver. He explained that some of the owners sometimes lose or refuse to hand back their license without any explanation, making it obvious that some of the owners do indeed take custody of drivers licences. Adam John who regularly commutes to and from Mbezi thinks this will be a good idea, saying most of the drivers in the city are guilty of overcharging commuters. The move will help traffic police to take action against the offenders more easily when they divert routes, he said. He explained that when a bus owner holds a drivers licence, it will force the driver to behave to avoid penalties. SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

Thread starter BabuK
Start date Dec 30, 2011

BabuK

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Daladala drivers laugh off Sumatra plans on licences

BabuK

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