Prime minister of Cameroon says embarrassed by massive toll-gate revenue drop

Courtesy - Harry Ndienla Yemti

The government of Cameroon is said to have been embarrassed by the sweeping drop in toll-gate revenue from around the country in the last two years.

Statistics from the country’s ministry of finance indicate that toll gate returns stood at 5billion FCFA annually, between 2001 and 2005 when the activities where being managed by an inter-ministerial committee.

Regrettably, annual takings have crashed to CFA 3 billion, since the Programme to Secure Road Returns took over control in 2005.

Presiding over a meeting of the National Road Board, which took place in the country’s capital of Yaounde, the country’s Prime Minister, Inoni Ephraim, who doubles as chairman of the board, expressed shock and disbelieve that returns from toll-gates were dropping not only at the time when government has set up more toll-gates in the country, but equally when government
has had several roads tarred.

So embarrassed was the Prime Minister and head of government that he ordered the country’s Minister of Public Works to promptly investigate the problem.

Sources at the Ministry of Public Works say the ministry will in the days ahead set up a computerised system to manage the process beginning with some major highways including Yaounde – Douala – Bafoussam, triangle which account for at least 75 percent of the
country’s tollgate takings.

Many critics have it that the Cameroon toll-gate sector is very corrupt, with agents openly receiving bribes from motorists who do not want to pay for the tickets. At the same time, it is believed that not all toll gate proceeds get to the State treasury. Reason why many are on the opinion that government should privatize the toll-gate sector