Towing Levy "A Good Idea", But . . . - Atik Mohammed

Atik Mohammed, suspended General Secretary of the People's National Convention (PNC), has waded into discussions regarding the mandatory towing levy in the country.

Contrary to views that the levy should be abolished, Atik Mohammed believes the mandatory towing levy is a good idea to avoid road accidents.

According to him, the levy would help in clearing roads of broken down vehicles and so called on vehicle owners to support the initiative.

Speaking on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', Atik Mohammed lauded the project but however made some additions to consolidate the process.

He called for proper contract and legislation arrangements to make the project solid and trustworthy.

He also advised the contractor of the project, Road Safety Management Services Ltd (RSMSL), not to disappoint Ghanaians with their services.

He urged the agency to regularly engage stakeholders in the project so as to beef up their services to them.

“Don’t give Ghanaians a cause to agitate and I believe that given the work they do and their capacity they have, if they want to do it, they’ll be able to do. So, do not allow people to feel that you were given the job at a time you couldn’t do it . . . do not disappoint whoever gave you the contract and do not disappoint Ghanaians,” he said.

Meanwhile the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) has given the government an ultimatum of 14 days to abort the towing contract.

To the group, the levy is a "high-tech robbery of the highest order".

This is because "the monopolization of the implementation of the towing service, to Road Safety Management Services Limited (RSMSL) is one major issue that must be properly considered. It is an affront to the NPP government, which prides itself as a supporter of creating a fair playing field for the actors in the private sector space", they stressed.

They therefore believe "monopolizing this essential service will not be in the best interest of many Ghanaians. Giving 85% of the towing levy to only one company (RSMSL), which would have only 47 towing points across the whole country along only 7 highways, is a high-tech robbery of the highest order".

But Atik Mohammed would have Ghanaians to exercise patience and cooperate with the government and the contractor to make the project successful.