NW Security Meeting: Commercial Bikers Warned Against Carrying More Than One At A Time.

November 11, 2019

By Raymond Dingana.

Commercial bike riders in Bamenda and the North West Region of Cameroon have been warned against carrying more than one person at a time. The warning came from Territorial Administration Minister, Atanga Nji Paul during a Security Evaluation Meeting that took place at the NW Governor’s office, Thursday November 07, 2019:

“A motor cycle has to carry just one passenger. A motor cycle cannot carry four people and most of the time, when they carry four people; you have two kidnapped people who are on the bike”. Minister Atanga Nji Paul said.

During the security evaluation meeting, commercial bike riders in the NWR also came under fire from Minister Atanga Nji Paul who says they have been implicated in many atrocities in the Region. He says bike riders have masterminded kidnappings and have committed many other atrocities inviting them to adhere to instructions by government to comply with the minimum requirements for them to exercise their profession. He also frowned at the fact that, nine months have come and gone yet, commercial bike riders are still dragging their feet behind as far as the identification process is concerned:

“We have realized that, commercial bike riders have masterminded kidnappings, right in front of schools and in market places. We had a meeting with the Syndicate of commercial bike riders telling them that, they have to comply with the minimum requirements for them to exercise their profession which is identification. I was here nine months ago and we came into a compromise and they asked for a nine months period of Grace for them to go through the identification process which means that, they have a jacket with their registration numbers and sub divisions where they work, written behind the jacket”. Atanga Nji Paul stated.

According to one of the leaders of the Bike Riders Syndicate by name Ndi Chia, Minister Atanga Nji Paul’s insinuations that commercial bike riders are Terrorists are not true. He says during the meeting, they were not allowed to say a word when they wanted to also table the challenges they face on a daily basis: “Saying that we are Terrorists is not true. Not all commercial bike riders are terrorists. We came here for a meeting but we were not given room for any questions. He was the only one talking and he gave us two months to register and have our jackets. It is very wrong to say commercial bike riders are terrorists”.

Worthy of not is the fact that, commercial bike riders and other transporters have been going through a lot of challenges especially in the hands of the forces of law and order who extort huge sums from them on a daily basis but this did not come up at the meeting.