The Executive Director of the Centre for the Employment of Persons with Disability, Mr. Alex Tetteh has sadly expressed his discomfort about Government’s decision to scrap road tolls.
In an interview on Republic FM’s ‘Anopa Dawuro’ with Kwame Koranteng, Mr. Tetteh emphasized economic hardship in the homes of persons living with disability as a result of the cessation of tolls in the country.
“The decision to scrap all road tolls in Ghana is accompanied with so much suffering and an inability to pay for basic living expenses among the disabled”, he said.
The toll booth facility, when developed, was to create job employment for persons living with disability. Government had implemented a policy to support the disabled with a 50% employment share across the various toll booths in the country.
The Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori – Atta, when presenting the budget and economic policy for the fiscal year, 2022 revealed an abolishment of all road toll booths across the country.
Reference to the abolition of toll booths as stated in the budget emerged a press statement from the Ministry of Transport led by the Minister, Kweku Asiamah that ordered for a termination of all road toll collection effective on Thursday, November 18, 2021.
This, to Mr. Tetteh is rather more harm than good to the disabled as he revealed that, “it all came as a surprise. There was no communication for the provision of an alternative means of income for employees, particularly living with disability”.
He added that, “I have received many calls. These calls begun right from yesterday. Till now, I have missed some that I may surely contact”.
Mr. Tetteh, however, urged affected persons to remain calm as preparations towards a sitting with government is underway to address the burden the situation is likely to have on the disabled.