[ 2016-11-23 ]

Tanker drivers resist ban on ‘10-year old’ vehicles
Gas tanker operators in the country have vowed to
resist any move by the National Petroleum
Authority (NPA), to ban the use of gas tanker
vehicles that are over ten years old.

The NPA recently announced that gas tankers which
are above ten years will not be allowed to operate
by next year. Speaking to Citi Business News, the
Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Drivers
Union, George Nyaunu warned that tanker operators
are ready to go by any maintenance mechanism that
government would outline, but not a ban.

According to him, the union will welcome any move
by government to help them acquire new gas tanker
vehicles before the NPA can be allowed to
successfully implement the new regulation.

“If NPA is ready to replace our old cars with
new ones, we will appreciate that. If they are
only ready to negotiate with a bank or a company
that will give us new trucks, so when they call
you and ask, Mr. Mensah how many trucks do you
have and I say three old trucks and they say come
we have new ones to replace them for you, we will
clap for them,” he said .

“But if they can’t do that, then they should
allow us to use the old ones with good maintenance
and works,” he added, stating that members of
the association have always adhered to strict
safety rules in the industry, including going to
all the appropriate institutions required for
inspection.


“They know exactly what they are doing. When
they are talking of safety we know that safety is
the number one priority for tanker drivers because
the products that we carry are highly inflammable,
we know, we agree, that is why we must maintain
our trucks very well,” Mr. Nyaunu remarked.

Moreover, this directive had been given to us
since 2012 and presently we only engage the
services of recognized agencies for all our
maintenance works.

Tanker drivers resist door-to-door gas delivery
Meanwhile Mr. Nyaunu also accused the NPA of
trying to take jobs from Ghanaians through a new
regulation that will ban domestic gas users from
filling their cylinders at the pumps, as a door to
door delivery system is set to be introduced by
the authority.

“The measures being proposed by the NPA will
involve awarding a contract to somebody and taking
the job from the Ghanaian but we are also
Ghanaians.

They have workers at their various filling
stations so it’s like they are taking the
contract from them and giving it to a particular
person,” he alleged.

He was of the view that government can rather
start a pragmatic measure by extending gas
pipeline to all households with meters like it is
done in developed countries.


“If it must be done then it must be done well.
If you travel to European countries, you see that
the government provides gas to them in their house
and they pay. Instead of doing this house to
house, we can plan something like this.”

Source -

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