The Deputy PRO of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), Samuel Amoah says government must ensure robust accountability in the wake of a reintroduction of road tolls.

Mr. Amoah expressed vehemently that the government must indicate clearly what the collected monies are being used for and also that the reintroduction should be able to resolve congestion issues on the roads.

“Now that they’re bringing it (road tolls), our expectation is that, as a major stakeholder, there has to be some engagement and also to explain to us and to convince us that now, with this new measure that they’re bringing in is going to help in terms of traffic congestion issues, in terms of the leakage that they were talking about.

“But if today, they just wake and say they’re bringing it without these explanations, or without letting we that we’re going to pay, the assurance of paying the money and what the money is also coming to do for us. That is our problem,” he said.

Mr. Amoah also indicated that the association does not have a problem with the increment percentage, however, the rollout of the prices must effect some positive change.

But he explained that during a meeting with the government, the association proposed a 50 per cent increment, saying that a percentage higher than that would be outrageous, in that the government could not sufficiently account for the previous rate when collected.

He added that with the rollout of new prices, the quality of roads must improve and help decongest traffic situations on the roads.

After announcing the discontinuation of road tolls in exchange for E-Levy as a measure to resuscitate the embattled economy, the government has now made a u-turn on its decision.

On Tuesday, March 14, it was announced that roll tolls are set to return but with a revised rate of 88 per cent increment.

This decision may come to add to government’s quest to find solutions to the country’s fiscal challenges, especially as a request for an IMF bailout and a recent request by the government for external creditors to cancel its debt seem to be in limbo.

Meanwhile, since the E-Levy which sought to lay taxes on electronic transactions came to replace road tolls, there are now discussions as to whether or not the E-Levy should be scrapped in wake of the reintroduction.