By:Nyima Sillah
Many drivers, particularly commercial drivers have frowned at the Inspector General of Police (IGP) over the yearly renewal of the driving license, contradicting the constitution which stated 3 years.
Dibba Saidy, a taxi driver whined that the police always take advantage of the drivers by putting up personal laws with regards to early license renewal. “Drivers face a lot of challenges in the traffic especially when the year ends. Some of the police don’t have patience and they put charges on us unnecessarily,” he lamented.
Unhappy Saidy disclosed that when he was applying for a license for the first time, “I paid D2500, but some paid D2000 and yearly, I pay D850 for my license renewal. Thus, it is not expensive, but considering the situation of our country’s economy, you don’t expect drivers to have the cash immediately when the year ends to renew the license.”
Momodou Jallow said “these people are just taking advantage of us. Sadly, I have to pay for a license every year when the law says 3 years. Why do they collect the money of the citizens illegally just to satisfy their selfish interests? This government and its people are making life difficult for the citizens in all aspects”.
“I urged The Gambia Transport Union to sensitize drivers on their rights because a lot of drivers’ rights are violated in the traffic but they don’t know. I take an example of myself because I never knew that licenses are renewed after every 3 years instead of 1 year which is a violation of rights and most of us don’t know,” he argued.
In a similar development, Ya Awa Sanneh, also expressed dismay with the Gambia law system saying there are too many human rights violations going on in the country and the drivers are amongst those facing the worst of all.
“Imagine private cars turning to commercial cars just to make some earning because of traffic corruption and the continuous issue of fuel in the country. A lot of regulations need to be put in place and drivers should know their rights as it is stated in the constitution,” she said.
Also, she said the Law officials should be accountable for the violation of drivers’ rights over the issue of license renewal. “I, therefore, challenged the government of The Gambia to put up a strict investigation regarding the renewal of licenses in the country,” she concluded.
