Kumasi Drivers Demand Price Controls For Goods, Brand Some Traders As Real ‘Kalabule‘

By Dominic Duut | Noblenews

Some drivers operating under registered transport unions in Kumasi have called on government to introduce price control measures for goods and services in the country.

According to the drivers, the call has become necessary following public backlash over the recent 8% adjustment in transport fares announced by the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council.

The drivers, who say they are unfairly blamed for the rising cost of living, described traders as the real “Kalabule” people in the country – a popular Ghanaian term for exploitative profiteering and hoarding.

“When we adjust transport fares, these traders start fighting us, the drivers, but we don’t increase fares on our own. It is the GPRTU that negotiates with government on whether fares should be increased, maintained or reduced. But as for the traders, who controls their prices?” one driver questioned.

They argued that unlike transport fares, which are strictly regulated and negotiated through the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) and other recognised unions with government involvement, traders have the freedom to determine their own prices without any form of regulation or oversight.

The drivers noted that transport operators are often accused of fueling inflation whenever fares are adjusted, with traders citing transport costs as justification for increasing the prices of their goods.

However, they said even when fuel prices and transport fares are reduced, traders fail to reduce the prices of their commodities, thereby worsening the plight of ordinary Ghanaians.

“The lack of price regulation in the trading sector is a major driver of the high cost of living,” they lamented.

They are therefore appealing to government to establish a price control mechanism to regulate the prices of goods on the market to ensure fairness, protect consumers and bring relief to the ordinary Ghanaian.

The drivers further urged the public to stop blaming transport operators for the high cost of goods and services, stressing that arbitrary price hikes by traders are largely responsible for the current economic hardship.