It is senseless to complain because tollbooths are not markets – Majority leader to traders

Government closes road and bridge toll collection centers nationwide

Traders lament over closure of toll collection centers

Minister says closure of tollbooths are justified

The Majority Leader and Member of Parliament for Suame, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu has described as senseless, the complaints of some traders whose activities have been affected by the closure of tollbooths across the country.

The government of Ghana looking at easing traffic congestion while exploring other forms of revenue mobilization has directed the closure of bridge and road toll collection centers across the country.

The directive has been met with grievances shared by some traders plying their trade around the toll collection points whose economic activities have been affected as a result of the policy coming into effect.

But reacting to the concerns, Mr Kyei Mensah Bonsu who doubles as the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs noted that the decision to close the tollbooths is justified owing to their cost of maintenance as compared the revenues realized.

This year, the government revenue from all tollbooths in the country were about Gh¢78 million and we use about Gh¢50 million to maintain and improve the spots around the tolls,” he said on Accra-based Okay FM.

He added that the purpose of operating tollbooths is not to create markets, hence the argument of the traders is flawed.

“Apart from maintenance, we have contracted people to clean the place two to three times daily to prevent visitors from outside categorising us dirty. So what the traders are saying that the government has rendered them jobless doesn’t make sense because the road tolls are not constructed to serve as market centres,” he stated.

He however went ahead to suggest that government “needs to develop more markets to inhabit all these traders who are in this dilemma.”