Surviving On Truck Pushing

For the past 10 years, Abdullia Dery has been pushing trucks, collecting scrap metals at Agbogloshie to earn a living.

When he arrived from Lawra in the Sissala district of the Upper West region in 2001, he joined four young men he knew from his hometown who were living at the slum behind the Abgogloshie market.

They introduced him to the truck pushing business which is their mainstay.

Young men usually push a four wheel truck in most parts of Accra, the capital of Ghana.

Their load includes all sorts of items that one can think of from scrap metals to broken televisions sets and food items.

Often dressed in dirty cloths and smelling of sweet with unkempt hair and oily skin, they push a truck made of metal with a flat wooden surface.

The trucks are locally made and according to Abdullia, who dropped out of school at age 9, “Truck pushing is not a bad business, it does not only provide jobs for us but to the people who make the trucks and even the scrap dealers who cannot be in business without us and then people such as market women who want their items moved from one point to the other.”

They travel from Abgogloshie to Mallam and rest for a few minutes under a tree.

“Business is not as good as it used to be when I arrived some years ago” said Abu, expressing dissatisfaction with a new directive from the city authorities.

The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has ordered all truck pushers to register with the assembly to obtain a special number plate which would help identify them and restrict their activities to specific areas in the city.

The directive, which takes effect on September 15, 2011, will lead to a total ban of truck pushing on certain streets in Accra under the assembly’s jurisdiction.

Alfred Oko Vanderpuije, Mayor of Accra explained that truck pushers pose a danger to motorists, as well as create inconvenience for pedestrians.
“These trucks are without braking systems, which makes it difficult for the pushers to control the truck when faced with dangerous situations such as negotiating a curve, avoiding a clash with a vehicle or other road users.

“They disrupt normal traffic flow. These truck pushers also put their lives at risk,” said the Mayor, who pleaded with members of the Association of Truck Pushers to corporate with the assembly by not extending their activities to some ceremonial and major streets such as areas near the High Street, 37 Military Hospital, Tetteh Quarshie Interchange, IPS, Airport, Kojo Thompson Road through Kokomlemle to the Avenor traffic lights.

Other areas which are now no go areas for truck pushers include the Labadi Beach Hotel road to the Independence Square, the Danquah, Kwame Nkrumah and Obetsebi-Lamptey circles to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
Other streets also include the Nima Highway through Kao Kudi traffic intersection to Dimples junction, Osu Oxford Street, Roman Ridge round and from Mallam junction to Graphic Road, the National Theatre, Cantonments and other prime residential areas.

However, trucks pushers are permitted to operate in all markets in the city and its environs.

Many have criticized the new directive, describing it as one of the AMA’s nine day wonders.

It would also be difficult to implement the new policy as even though effectively all streets in the metropolis have names most street are not signed.

For instance a person looking for direction to the Old Parliament House would be told to turn right before he or she gets to the blues house near the Circle and it’s often confusing for especially visitors and foreigners to find their way so one wonders how the AMA can clearly mark out the areas which lack precision and specificity.

He stated that sign posts will be mounted in the city to direct truck pushers on streets they can use.

Men would also be dispatched onto these streets to ensure compliance of the directive by the truck pushers. Violators will be arraigned before a special court for prosecution.
So far, a list of the names of 150 truck pushers has been submitted to the Assembly even though the deadline of September 3 has expired.

Abdullah Abdul Raman, Chairman of the Grater Accra Scrap Dealer, says his group has no problem with the new policy by the AMA though he believes it is a stern measure to regulate the activities of truck pushers.

He pleaded with the AMA to be flexible with the implementation of the law and educate truck pushers and the public.