The current reform by the Ministry of Transport to clean the sector of amateurism is yet to yield the desired results.

The measure taken by the Ministry of Transport to eliminate unskilled drivers from Cameroon’s highways through obligatory training in a driving school as prerequisite for obtaining a driving licence is yet to register tangible results. Two-months after the organisation of a national driving licence examination by the Ministry of Transport, many people still question the authenticity of the examination which was written at different time, giving room for some candidates to know questions before time. Although the Centre Regional Delegate of Transport, Jules Martin Nguina says the national driving licence examination is a new reform which is still to be well organised in the country, observers say the Ministry of Transport still has much to do in dealing with unscrupulous driving school teachers and other transport staff who collect bribes from individuals wishing to obtain a driving licence.

In Cameroon like elsewhere in the world, a driving school is a place where people are taught to drive automobiles. But it becomes a serious problem when those involved in teaching people how to drive, are at the centre of promoting fraudulent ways to help their students obtain driving licences through unorthodox means. Vivian M. is one of those who enrolled in a driving school in Yaounde to obtain a driving licence. After two months of theoretical and practical sessions, then came the time for Vivian to sit for the driving licence examination. On the day of the test, she was in the fourth group to enter the examination hall. One hour after writing the examination, Vivian’s driving school teacher called her over the phone requesting FCFA 10,000 purportedly to bribe the jury marking the examination.

The driving school teacher claimed that Vivian had not written the examination well and might not succeed if she does not bribe her way through. Vivian immediately knew her driving school teacher was out for an act of corruption because the other candidates were still in the examination hall. So how come her paper was at the point of correction when other candidates were still writing the examination, she questioned. Also, some driving school teachers are said to have leaked examination questions to candidates before hand. No matter how hard it might be, the Centre Regional Delegate of Transport says the new reform to clean up the transport sector of untrained drivers will surely yield positive results with time. According to him, measures have already been taken for available bigger examination centres where candidates will all sit the examination at the same time. So far, Jules Nguina says despite some difficulties, the reform is on a good footing.