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15.04.2014 Special Report

Ripples Of ‘Soul Takers’ Exposé’: DVLA OFFICIALS WEEP [Part 4]

..Don’t Show Our Faces, We Would Not Take Bribes Again
By Anas Aremeyaw Anas Reports Weija DVLA
Ripples Of Soul Takers Expos: DVLA OFFICIALS WEEP Part 4
15.04.2014 LISTEN

The heat is on for the corrupt Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) officials who were shown on our investigative series 'Soul Takers' which premiered last week at the National Theatre. Five of them from Accra have already met reporters of the New Crusading Guide weeping uncontrollably and asking for pardon never to take bribe again.

They pleaded that their faces be taken out of the expose before it is shown on National Television since that would embarrass them before their family members. The promised to pay the reporters whatever cost they incurred during the investigation. 'Why me, why me, all of us take bribes so why me, I have been working for over 20 years nobody has ever caught me, now that I am going on pension look at the problem you put me into, what is my wife going to say?' one of them kneeling down and crying uncontrollably. 'I will not go down alone, because I don't spend the money alone we are together and if they don't protect me from the Management level I would not protect them' he added while holding the leg of the reporter and begging.


The reporters however told them that, the exercise was a national exercise and that it was not possible for their faces to be taken out of the investigative piece since the evidence had already been passed on to the Criminal Investigations Department [CID] of The Ghana Police Service. Meanwhile the film which was premiered at the National Theatre saw over 6000 people coming to watch, it was supported by Star Ghana and the Graphic Communication Group.

Sections of the University of Ghana community have called for another premiere at the University premises today. The forecourt of the University of Ghana Central Cafeteria is expected to host over 20,000 students today for the open air show. It would start at 8pm for the first show and 9.30 pm for the second. The attendance is free.

SOULTAKERS 4…

DVLA 37

At the 37 branch of DVLA, which happens to be the heartbeat of licensing operations in Ghana, where one would have expected that processes would be tighter and more stringent; the team managed to get many licenses.

First; we contacted one Billy, with the request for an express license, which is a license that would take less than a week. Initially he sounded as though it was impossible but later agreed to help because we convinced him that we needed it urgently.

With this process, we were not supposed to undertake the written or take the in – traffic test and the amount he quoted was 300 Ghana cedis. We paid the amount and the license was delivered in a matter of three days.

In our second story here at 37, we took pictures of a mentally deranged man and presented them to an official under the pretext that he was a relation who was living abroad and wanted to have a local license fixed for him before he returned to town.

There again, in as much as the customer paid the agreed sum of 250 Ghana cedis, our license was delivered at an appointed time. At the same branch we fixed a license for a physically challenged man who we found begging by the roadside just because we were ready to pay the 250 Ghana cedis charge put forward by the officer.

These instances exposed a lapse in the license acquisition process with respect to the flouting of a statutory rule to do with physical presence of an applicant as required in the issuance of licenses and grievously so, at no mean a branch as the headquarters at 37.

DVLA Tema – ISSUES OF FRAUD AND FORGERY
At DVLA office in Tema, the team encountered an official called Mr. Selase. He was ready to assist an applicant to skip all processes in acquiring licenses but insisted that applicants show up to have their biometric details captured before their temporary licenses are issued.

Mr. Selase went as far as releasing official documentation to license contractors in order to convince applicants to come and have their details captured.

One such document which we intercepted, exposed the extent to which officials of the DVLA were abusing the laws by issuing pass marks in respect of the written test, eye tests and in – traffic tests; all these tests have not been taken.

At Tema for example, the breakdown for components as we saw it on an applicant's document summed up to 73.50 Ghana cedis. Yet the applicant had to pay 250 Ghana cedis to Mr. Selase in two tranches of 150 Ghana cedis and the remainder when he came to pick the temporal license.

The corresponding Form F 1 is usually in two parts; the first part for applicants to fill out and the other part to be completed by an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. We realized that all portions meant for applicants were usually completed by the connection officers.

Even the part meant for an ophthalmologist was also filled in right there at the DVLA even though the applicant was almost always absent during the process.

The scores for one of the applicants read as follows:

Visual acuity: (6 out of 6) for UNAIDED VR and VL.

Visual Field Assessment: 'FULL FIELD'
Binocular Vision Assessment NAD
Medical Reports Vision is good
A date was quoted and the 'supposed signature and stamp of the ophthalmologist/ optometrist was appended but without a stamp as was required by law.

In the end, the applicant in question has gone for the temporal license and has been issued the license proper.

DRIVING TEST WAHALA
Indeed, an area within the DVLA that was rife with extortion was the driving test. For the better part of time, instructors would take GH¢ 50 or more as bribe, in order to pass an applicant even if an applicant fails the test.

What most applicants feared was the inconvenience of time and travel that was associated with being referred in the event that they fail to get the minimum 21 marks out of 30 questions.

Several people who have failed to pay this bribe sum, ended up writing the exams for several times. One such frustrated applicant we met in Tamale recounts his ordeal at the hands of these officers when he went for a license upgrade from grade C to D.

Applicant: At some point, I decided to pass the back door; I would skip every test be it in traffic or theory test.

Tiger: It was a fair deal, isn't it?
Applicant: Yes, I think it is good. I processed license B in Accra, the man took 250 Ghana cedis that I had to write the exams, three times I failed. I had to collude with some other guy on the fourth attempt before we passed.

Tiger: Before you passed; I see …
Applicant: Even with that I had to come and do the eye test and other things, they realized that I was going to do anything to get the license because they had my records.

It is much easier for a person who pays huge sum of money; he has a hustle free process. At least with a valid license, I would earn a living. I currently hold license C, even which one expires in 2012.

The bigger issue is how I would survive if I end up using all my salary to process a license. At least it affords me the opportunity to travel outside on ticket of the company, without a license your chances are limited.

Ho DVLA
When the investigative team got to the Ho, we were immediately pointed in the direction of Mr. Nelson, a man reputed for fixing licenses within the shortest possible time.

Unlike officials in other parts of the country, he was ready to process local licenses for expatiates provided such people avail themselves at an appointed time for their biometric details to be captured.

Like Mr. Selase of Tema DVLA, Mr. Nelson readily released official documents to license contractors to convince applicants to avail themselves on the day of capturing to complete the process.

Thanks to his hard work, we have documents indicating that four expatriates have learners' licenses, and he is awaiting their arrival whenever they do to complete the process.

CRISSCROSSING LICENSE APPLICATIONS & FRAUDULENT DOCUMENTATION

It was also at Ho DVLA that we discovered the phenomenon where people applied for licenses in a particular office but were referred to other offices to complete the process. This is what we came to know as the crisscrossing of applications.

We applied for three licenses in respect of absentee applicants and Mr. Nelson agreed to proceed with the process if we would pay him a sum of 300 Ghana cedis in respect of each applicant.

When the learners' licenses were ready for the three, Mr. Nelson gave us the contact of another officer at Winneba DVLA and asked that the applicants report to Winneba, where they would be required only to undergo the final processes of the application.

Whiles we were at Winneba, the team found something curious about the application document in respect of all three applicants. It was the answer to how DVLA officers applied for licenses through the back; and the process can best be described as fraudulent.

First: DVLA officers obtained official station diary extracts from the Police indicating that the particular applicant had lost his/her license.

Second: Then they proceeded to fake an old driver's license copy with the particular picture that the applicants attached earlier.

So the particular application comes across as a license replacement rather than a fresh application. This we detected was the reason why applicants could skip all other processes.

Weija DVLA
The team also investigated some officials at DVLA branch at Weija. Here again, we found officers would insist on due process insofar as applicants were ready to avail themselves to complete the processes at the stage of issuing the temporal license.

At the center of the deals here at Weija was an official called Mr. Brako ably assisted by his cohort called Mr. Ghartey.

Although officials at Tema and Ho DVLA offices would readily release license documentation, Mr. Ghartey would not. He preferred to keep all documents till the applicants were ready to take their tests and thumbprint in Accra; a situation that again confirmed the crisscrossing of license application.

It was at Weija that we managed to process a license for popular radio presenter, Abeiku Aggrey Santana, without his knowledge.

The whole episode started when we asked Mr. Brako if he could help us process a license for Abeiku, who we introduced as a neighbor.

This is what transpired:
Tiger: What about the license for Abeiku Santana; we share a wall with him and he has also misplaced his. Can you help us with that too?

Mr. Brako: Which Abeiku; the presenter?
Tiger: Yes
Mr. Brako: I do not do stuff for such people, in any case; how did he misplace his license?

Tiger: Not misplaced per se, truth is, he does not even have one at all.

Mr. Brako: So he also needs one?
Tiger: Yes he does.
Uncomfortable as he felt, Mr. Brako directed us to deal with Mr. Ghartey, another license fixing expert at Weija.

After making payment of 300 Ghana cedis to Mr. Ghartey, he gave us a provisional license of Abeiku Santana, curiously it was in the old wine coloured booklet format. Yet it bore the name and picture of Abeiku Aggrey Santana.

When it got to the stage of picture capturing, signijng and thumb printing, we told Mr. Ghartey about the inability of a very busy Abeiku Santana to come personally to their offices during the weekdays.

And since DVLA offices were closed on weekends, Mr. Ghartey agreed to another person using his details to complete the process even though the name of applicant would remain unchanged.

This is what ensued between us and Mr. Ghartey:
Mr. Ghartey: So as you can see, this is his temporal document, everything has been signed, it would have been best if he could come and complete it [i.e. take picture, sign and thumbprint]

Tiger: As you know, he is very busy during the weekdays; he can make time only on weekends and as it stands you do not work on weekends too.

Mr. Ghartey: Yes, we do not work on weekends.
Tiger: I was thinking of bringing my picture to be used so that I can thumbprint in his stead.

Mr. Ghartey: Okay
Tiger: So that as and when he is ready, I would bring him to come and do his part.

Mr. Ghartey: It is a fast process that would not last even five minutes

Tiger: I know; that is the reason why I want to add some money so that his name remains and my picture is used.

Mr. Ghartey: If so, then I might as well use your name. Then wait till he comes to complete the process

Tiger: I prefer that you use my face and his name because this process has come this far.

Mr. Ghartey: Maybe you should give me your name so that I can do this for you, so that I keep this copy for him till such a time that he is available.

Tiger: Is that so? Then let me put down my details for you to proceed in that direction.

Tamale DVLA
The team had heard a lot about the Tamale DVLA branch; amongst other accolades, it was seen as the notorious branch where all kinds of illegalities were being perpetrated, and over the period of our investigations, we found these perceptions to be true.

As part of our work, we spoke to the branch director and his deputy, who exhibited full awareness of due process in the license acquisition process, yet when we went down to the offices, it was an entirely different story.

We uncovered that officials were taking huge sums of money to issue fake licenses, colluding with applicants to skip application processes for huge sums of money plus renewing and replacing licenses without recourse to the law.

By far the biggest license contractor we met at Tamale was called Nana Kwame (a.k.a. Nana Hotman) he took pride in the swift delivery of licenses.

Thanks to his ingenuity, the team managed to fix licenses for a cripple we met in Tamale, a market woman and a man whose picture we picked up from the internet.

The team paid Hotman 300 Ghana cedis for the physically challenged man's license. Whiles that of the market woman and the other man cost the team 400 Ghana cedis each.


On one occasion we approached Nana Hotman to help us fix a license for an expatriate, our request triggered a revelation from him on the dangers associated with trying to fix local licenses for expatriates. This is what ensued:

Tiger: Can you help us with a license for a white friend in London, he is coming down very soon.

Nana Hotman: “As for a white man, Chief (Director) would not do it. The applicant must go to the DVLA head office. He must first write a letter, approval must be given and then his passport attached.

If he has not been here for more than a year too, he cannot apply. In fact, I do not want to have anything doing with white people.

Sometime back, some five Chinese came and offered me 1000 Ghana cedis (10 million) for each applicant, but chief rejected the work. They came here after failing to obtain licenses at Tarkwa, Accra, Takoradi etc.

So one of the police guards told them I could do it for them. They were ready even to pay as much as 10,000 Ghana cedis (100 million)

So they gave me fifty million for the five of them, they had been in the country for two years and had all other documents ready but chief said lest they write officially to Accra, he would not do it. I did all that I could but to no avail”

Nana Kwame continued: “A story is told of how a DVLA officer in Obuasi fixed licenses for 15 Chinese at a cost of 500 Ghana cedis for each.

One of these Chinese, went to cross the convoy of the then second lady (President Mahama's wife). After drawing the Chinese's attention severally he did not mind the motorcade and even insulted them on top.

He was subsequently arrested and his license seized, it turned out that at the time; he had been in Ghana for just five months. Just five months and he was having a license.

To make matters worse, a search in his car revealed that he had smoked heavily. Because of that, I do not want to have anything to do with these Chinese or expatriates seeking to get local licenses.

Chief would not do it, he would just disgrace and insult you on top. I would rather live on the little that I get in this case.”

Also at Tamale, an officer by name Abdul Aziz help us to upgrade a license at a fee of 250 Ghana cedis, whiles another called Nana Boakye also nearly aided us to fix a license for an insane man but for the insistence of the officer in charge that the man takes a test drive within the DVLA premises.

KUMASI MAIN DVLA
At some point in our investigation, the team agreed to go through the normal license acquisition process as stipulated by law. And we chose to use the Kumasi main branch for this operation.

One: We presented a valid identification card as a prerequisite to be given a form, following which we made 65 Ghana cedis payment at the bank.

Whiles at the bank to pay, we encountered some gurro boys who assured us that we needed people like them to assist us, because going through the normal means was too hectic and fraught with bureaucracy. But we persisted.

Two: We were directed on the same day to take our eye test, which we did and passed, not after we had been introduced to one Razak, who we paid a 20 Ghana cedis tip for starters. Razak was to be our guide through the process.

Three: The written test examination, and here Razak played his first significant role in helping us. As difficult as the test is reputed to be, he asked us to pay an amount of 50 Ghana cedis to a particular office.

What we had to do was to sit through the exams period and just give him our exam code after, it was with our code that he would ensure that we are given a pass mark even if we do not tick a single answer.

Four: Now was the time for the in – traffic test. Here again; due to the DVLA's inability to provide a car for the test, Razak asked that if we could get an automatic vehicle, he could comfortably find a way of convincing his superiors that we indeed had taken and passed the exams.

If the team had managed to pass the in – traffic test, it would be left with a date to take picture, sign and thumb print then receive our temporary license. The last bit would have been a three – months wait for the license proper to be issued.

Lessons we took from this process were primarily that people within the DVLA had become stumbling blocks to due process, a typical case in point being Razak.

Also, there is a network of sorts, where Razak in our case was able to tell us who to pay and how much in order to have 'a stroll in the park.'

It is this endemic and systemic bribery in the normal processes that leaves most customers frustrated and opting to go with the pay – as – you – go or the cash and carry process even though they have to pay bloated sums to these greedy officers.

THE LICENCE ACQUISITION PROCEDURE
According to DVLA license acquisition rules [as contained in the Road Traffic Regulations 2012, LI 2180] regulation 26 subsections 1, 2, 3 and 4; a new applicant is eligible for a learners' license if he/ she satisfies the following core conditions:

a. 18 years and above
b. Applicants must be physically present and produce a birth certificate or other relevant documents

c. Examined by an officer of DVLA (oral, theoretical and practical driving test.)

Yet as we found during the period of our investigation, all three basic conditions could be bypassed on the condition that a person could pay as much money as was requested by an official or by gurro boys who had links with officials at a particular branch.

The interesting thing however is that be it officials or 'gurro boys' they would take pains to explain to you the right process as stated in the law, then give you the other option of going in for a fake license.

Stay tuned for there are more faces to be unmasked.

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