Gulu boda riders warned against hiding number plates

Gulu | The Resident City Commissioner (RCC) of Gulu has warned boda-boda riders who are attempting to conceal their number plates to stop.

The practice is making it hard to identify people who are interfering with the traffic police’s work, according to RCC Onoria Ambrose.

Onoria issued the warning during a press conference in his office on Thursday, stating that riders hide their plates for unknown reasons.

He went on to say that boda-boda’s improper number plate-fixing practices are contributing to the city’s high rate of motor vehicle and motorcycle thefts as well as other criminal cases.

The RCC has directed police traffic and road safety officers to take immediate action and conduct “massive operations” to arrest and fine all violators.

“It is very important to display and position the number plate in a clear direction for easy identification of a specific rider, because it is not for fashion,” he advised.

Ocen Emmy, the Gulu City West boda-boda chairperson, advises traffic officers to involve boda-boda leaders in enforcement operations.

This, according to Ocen, is because the traffic department has a limited number of enforcement officers to manage the operation.

“If we are mandated to enforce non-compliance, we will do so in no more than one week. Some boda-boda are not good people that are defying the law to fix the number plates.”

He has advised all boda-boda riders in Acholi, not only in the city, to comply with the directive of reattaching their number plates in a more visible position.

ASP Otika Patrick Lachen, OC Traffic for Greater Gulu, advised non-compliant boda-boda riders to return to the garage where they incorrectly fixed their number plates.

He also asked them to remove the silencers before the law catches up with them and punishes them.

“They are the ones frustrating our work. It is promoting the level of criminal cases yet as police we are trying to fight for criminals in the city,” Otika revealed.

According to him, they started the operation and were able to apprehend roughly three riders who were not complying on Wednesday. They were also fined shs 40,000 and told to reattach their license plates.

He calls for collaboration to ensure the operation’s success.

He told all of the boda boda stage masters in Gulu City that while the police are fighting for sound pollution, they continue to make noise.