Get rid of rickety cars on our roads — Transport Minister directs DVLA, Police

The Minister for Transport, Joseph Bukari Nipke, has ordered the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the Ghana Police Service to intensify the removal of rickety and unsafe vehicles from the country’s roads.

Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday, October 2, 2025, the minister stressed that no vehicle should be cleared as roadworthy unless it has passed a thorough inspection and meets the required safety standards.

“As a government, we will need to sit down on getting rickety cars off the roads. I have had conversations with the DVLA that any vehicle that is not inspected properly should not be given a roadworthy certificate. But it goes beyond them. The police should come in and be able to take out that vehicle as well,” he said.

Mr. Nipke also raised concerns about the influence of middlemen, popularly known as “goro boys,” who facilitate the acquisition of roadworthy certificates for unfit vehicles. He noted that the government is expanding DVLA offices nationwide to curb such practices and ensure accessibility.

“DVLA should not give a roadworthy certificate to any vehicle when they have not seen it. If they have seen it and it is not roadworthy, it should not be certified,” he added.

On government intervention, the minister revealed that plans are underway to inject more vehicles into state-run transport services to reduce public reliance on unsafe vehicles.

“We should take it upon ourselves as a government to bring in more vehicles to support Metro Mass Transport, STC and others to be able to service more people. If they have the alternatives, they will not be moved to enter those rickety cars,” Mr. Nipke stated.