By Precious D. Freeman
The Kehkeh Drivers Association has expressed serious dissatisfaction over the Ministry of Transport (MoT) new transportation fares for commercial vehicles including kehkehs which is expected to be enforced soon.
Conducting an interview yesterday with the spokesperson, Jacob Sehkoor, he mentioned that the Kehkeh drivers have become modern slaves in Liberia as the mandate that came from the government on the reduction of the transportation fares hit them by surprise which is so frustrating.
He added that they are not gaining any profit from the work they do and mentioned that a kehkeh is being sold for US$3,200 in Liberia while in other countries the prices are less.
Mr. Sehkpor mentioned that as the Kehkeh is being sold for such huge amount and even when they decide to purchase it by installment, the owner usually charges US$6,000, which is twice the amount it was bought originally.
He stated that the government should first find a means of reducing the price of kehkeh as well as gasoline stating, ”We are being forced to report L$3,000 daily to the owner and the little tapping we give to the police cannot really be easy therefore we are left with nothing for ourselves.”
He also mentioned that government should allow them to continue with the three passengers per trip and dissolve the existing of the tricycle union because they do not have a stable office and the Union does not seek the interest of the tricycle drivers.
He further disclosed that it is becoming difficult to even provide for their families because they spent almost all of their daily earnings on reporting to the owners while at the same settling the police, among other things.
According to another kehkeh rider, Anthony Karto, government is not concerned about how well they make their profit to sustain their families but they are only concern about what the passengers pay.
“Some of us are high school graduates but no jobs in the country and the only means of our survival is to drive kehkeh, even if we are asked to report higher amount than that, there is nothing we can do because we have nobody, not even the government, talking on our behalf,” he narrated sorrowfully.
He maintained that the Kehkeh does not have strong engine and before they can even complete the payment, if it is work and pay, the Kehkeh is no longer useful; which is also frustrating.