Owing to the complaints by taxi drivers of the lack of a garage and points to pick up passengers in the Kanifing municipality, this reporter decided to contact the taxi drivers at West Field to get their views on the problem.

According to Mr. Ebrima Njie, a 55 year old driver living in Ebo Town, he has been a taxi driver for over 30 years now. He said the problems of the taxi drivers in Serrekunda are many. He also complained about the lack of respect for drivers by the police as they often clash on the traffic. He said drivers are calling for the creation of a government unit that will deal with the concerns of taxi drivers.
Mr. Njie lamented the lack of a garage designated for taxis in the whole of Serrekunda. He claimed that the transport union is not properly representing them and taking up their concerns to the authorities for redress. He said that whenever a taxi driver has a problem with the Police which, according to him happens so often, no member of the association or union will bother himself with such cases. He said drivers are being locked everyday and for no just reason in some cases.
“The amount of income that is being generated by taxi drivers in this country is not generated by any other sector,” said Mr. Njie.
Mr. Njie said he is a bona fide member of the drivers’ union and a Gambian national and that as such he needs security as everybody else in the country.
He claimed that normally when they are taken to Police stations and court for alleged offences they are not given the chance to give their version of what happened and which is a problem for them. He said there are no parking areas for them and that the issue of one-way on some roads is also disturbing them. Mr. Njie concluded that the traffic nowadays is not generating much income for the taxis.
Mr. Baka Ceesay , a 39 year old, who said he has been driving for 19 years now, explained the difficulties they encounter with their vehicles during the rainy season when people create their own road blocks in some streets to deny passage to taxis. He said such people claim that if taxis are allowed to ply these roads they would make them impassable for pedestrians.
Mr Ceesay complained about the driving licenses that the Police seize from drivers when they are alleged to have committed traffic offences. He said alleged offenders should be booked and their licences returned; they should be taken to court immediately. He also called on his fellow taxi drivers to ensure that they always carry valid documents when driving, such as licences and insurance. He concluded by stating that the price of fuel is exorbitant.
Another driver, Mr. Muhammad Touray, said that no avenue is created to provide redress for them when they have problems. He blamed the union for not addressing the issues affecting drivers in the country. He said the drivers are not encouraged or involved in discussions concerning issues that affect their work and that they should be part of the problem solving mechanisms for the traffic and the drivers.
Mr. Touray called on the government to do consider the plight of taxi drivers in the traffic.
When contacted to get his version and response to the concerns raised by the drivers, Mr. Sheriff Dibba, Secretary General of the Gambia National Transport Control Association (GNTCA) and the Transport Drivers Association, said his association and the Police have collaborated to address the problem of traffic congestion at West Field junction, which is declared a no parking area for taxis.
Mr. Dibba said the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) is supposed to provide car parks for drivers in the municipality. According to him what they can do as an association is to negotiate with KMC to provide drivers with land to use as car park.
The transport association secretary general said the two sites already identified for them to use as car park are an area in Abuko and the old GPTC complex in Kanifing, but added that these places are yet to be developed for the purpose. He said consultations are in progress.
On the issue of the association not seen to be fighting for the rights of the drivers, Mr. Dibba said he disagrees with the claim. According to him, the association is fighting day and night to see to it that the interests of drivers are served. He said some drivers are taken to court because of traffic obstruction and reckless driving and that it is the union that fights for them. He noted that occasionally when these drivers are fined by a court it is the union that pays the fine. He added that there is no special fund for this.
Mr. Dibba argued that association cannot fight for the rights of a driver if he is not a registered member of the union.
Mr. Dibba denied the claim that the union does not come to the aid of drivers when they are arrested by the Police. He questioned why some of the drivers are arrested in the first place, adding that any responsible driver should know the traffic rules and regulations. The drivers’ association secretary general said his advice to the drivers is for them to drive carefully and to respect the traffic rules and regulations, and to also respect the views of passengers.
On the claim by the drivers that the police do not give them the opportunity to hear their own version when arrested, the Police PRO, Superintendent Sulayman Secka, emphasized that the drivers have a right to be heard when alleged to have committed an offence. Superintendent Secka said one cannot hear only from one side and then determine a case. He stressed that they must hear from both parties in a dispute.
On the issue of licences, PRO Secka said the police do not have any right to seize the driving license of alleged traffic offenders, but was quick to say that in certain circumstances as when the driver is found drunken or driving in a manner which is dangerous to other road users the police have a right to seize their licences.
PRO Secka said the Police do not also force drivers to join the union. He said there is a rule that states that before any commercial driving license is renewed, the driver needs to have a clearance from the Gambia National Transport Control Association. He explained that if you are a union member they will issue you with a clearance and that even if you are not a member you will have a clearance. He said this is an arrangement between the union and the police and has been there since January 2008.
The Police PRO said that even if a driver is not allowed to talk at the Police station, he will definitely be given the chance to state his version at the industrial tribunal where the Police do not have the final decision; that there you find independent judges to hear and determine cases. PRO Secka said he would want to assure drivers that there is nothing like taking advantage upon one another.