Leaders of bikers’ syndicates raised the concern in a recent meeting with Territorial Administration Minister Atanga Nji Paul.

Dieudonné Pagal Baleba, spokesman of the syndicates of riders at the meeting said the money

will enable riders to attain training for a Category A Driving License and to pay for their Licenses.

The request comes over a year after the bikers fail to meet up with demands from Atanji to identity and regularize themselves. On March 2, 2018, Atanga Nji met with the same leaders of riders’ syndicates.

Then, the riders promised to regularize their situation within four months. Yet Minister Atanga Nji returned to Douala recently without the riders respecting the agreement. The syndicates met the minister to instead table a demand for Government sub- vention to enable them train and obtain their licenses.

Analysts posit that the demand means the State should start paying for the training of all commercial cycle riders in the country and provide them Licenses for free. It is near impossible for the Government to give any form of subvention to commercial motorcycle riders in Douala or any part of the country.

Observers say government can never accept such demands. Atanga Nji avoided talking about the issue of State subvention as he faced the press after discussing with the bikers’ representatives.

The minister only said that riders have made some demands, but did not make any promise on behalf of Government.

PM’s Order Still Hanging

A Prime Ministerial Order to regularize the commercial motorcycle sector in Cameroon, surfaced on December 31, 2008.The then Prime Minister, Chief Ephraim Inoni signed that order.

The decision requires commercial motorcycles across Cameroon have all officially required documents. These comprise insurance policy, ‘carte grisse’, category ‘A’ driving License, helmets, among others. In cities, each commercial motor- cycle rider is supposed to limit his operation to one of subdivisions within the same metropolis going by the same Prime Ministerial decree.

This means that in towns with more than one subdivision like the case of Douala (Douala 1-5), or Limbe, Bamenda or Kumba with three municipalities each, a rider is supposed to operate only in one of them. They are supposed to have jerseys bearing colours jointly agreed upon with mayors and SDOs.

In the Wouri Division, administrators have failed to get bikers to re- spect the dictates of the Prime Ministerial decision. The Douala City Council talks about the number of commercial motorcycles and riders in the city in terms of estimation. There are no statistics.

Atanga Nji while in Douala described the situation of local administrators not knowing those operating in the urban transport sector as dangerous.