Some Accra tollbooth employees will stage a protest today, Tuesday, November 30, 2021, to protest the stoppage of toll collection, which has left them redundant.
According to them, the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako Atta‘s instruction is having a negative influence on their lives.
This is in response to the Roads Minister’s decision that the collection of road and bridge tolls at all sites countrywide cease at 12 a.m. on Thursday, November 18, 2021.
This followed the Finance Minister’s declaration during the 2022 budget preparation to Parliament, in which he said that the decision will take effect when the budget was approved by Parliament.
The government has said that the tollbooth employees would be retrained and reallocated and that no one will lose their employment since they will continue to withdraw their paychecks.
In an interview with Citi News, Edward Duncan, Secretary of the Ghana Toll Workers Union, stated the minister made a hurried judgment.
“We are of the view that the Minister for Roads and Highways rushed the decision and should have waited for Parliament to deliberate on the budget especially on the part that deals with the cessation of the road tolls collection. So we are doing this to express our disapproval for the unlawful way in which he has abruptly brought our jobs to an end and our livelihood.”
Mr. Duncan noted that if the sector minister is charged with causing financial damage to the state, it will be sensible.
“If Ghana was a place where rule of law worked, the Minister per his decision and actions has caused financial loss to the state and should be charged for it because every day we know we make about GHS200,000.”
“If this amount is multiplied by the number of days we have been sitting at home, you can imagine the amount of money the government is losing.”
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