Monrovia – Commuting from one location to another in traffic jammed Monrovia is very difficult for many citizens, but for a local fish seller Josephine Toe, it becomes less of a worry to transport herself and tub of fish on a canoe cross the Mesurado River to the West Point peninsula in Monrovia.
Report by Mae Azango [email protected]
“We need life jackets because anything can happen at any time; so life jackets are important. We once had an incident when people fell into the river, but we had people around who could swim to arrest the situation, so we are asking the government for jackets because the river has no master” – Canoe Rider Kelvin Jobo
“I take the canoe every day to buy my fish from West Point and cross to Clara Town to sell around,” Josephine said.
“For me, it is cheap, because I use L$30 for me and my tub of fish; but when I take the kehkeh [tricycle] I pay L$ 60 for my tub of fish and L$20 as my transport fare. The canoe charges me small money, because money business is hard, so this is why I take the canoe.”
At the docking point Josephine, like many other people, including students, marketers, civil servants, military and police officers, leaving West Point to get to Clara Town, ride canoe on a daily basis.
Not only does the canoe serve as a pathway of bypassing Monrovia’s early morning and evening traffic, but is also a cheap form of transportation.
However, this means of transportation poses serious risk to its passengers who are mostly women and children. No life jackets are used during the sail.
This, according to canoe operator, Kelvin Jobo, has been of a major concern to him.
“We need life jackets because anything can happen at any time; so life jackets are important. We once had an incident when people fell into the river, but we had people around who could swim to arrest the situation, so we are asking the government for jackets because the river has no master,” Jobo said.
A year ago, FrontPage Africa reported a story under the headline “Toying with Tragedy”.
The story pointed out the danger students and others face while crossing the Mesurado River without life jackets. The story called for government’s intervention.At the time, former Transportation Minister Len Eugene Nagbe said he was astonished to know that canoe transportation was going on in the city.
“Our hands are tied in providing life jackets for canoe riders, because we do not produce life jackets in Liberia, neither do we have the store that sells them unless the few that our partners gave to Maritime. In order to get more life jackets, we will have to go to Ghana, but we will see what to do,” Min. Nagbe told FrontPageAfrica.
Unfortunately, the government did not act until the following year when 13 students drowned when a boat capsized while transporting the students across the river.
The government acted swiftly by sending divers to rescue the children; alas only their lifeless bodies were found.
However, it failed to supply the river transport union life jackets or ensure that they provide their passenger life jackets before embarking on their sail.
Nevertheless, commuters would rather resort to canoe transportation to get to their destination quicker and avoid passing the longer route.
Students of the Assembly of God Mission School (AGM) on Buchanan Street said they were aware of the dangers of riding without life jackets, but such was the only affordable means of transportation for them as students.
“We always ride the canoe to come to school in Clara Town because it is the shortest and the cheapest way to get to school in time.”
“We pay only L$10 but when we take kehkeh, we pay L$20 and we get late because of the heavy traffic on the bridge,” Student Theresa Kollie of AGM school told FrontPage Africa.
FrontPage Africa took a ride on the canoe from Clara Town to West Point to speak with the head of the River Transport Union.
“We want the government ministries to help provide us with life jackets because river transportation is important and cuts down the traffic.”
“We collect L$ 10 per person to make one trip to cross and L$ 10 to return; but the money cannot buy life jackets because one life jacket is sold at US$ 30 -35.
“We cannot improve because the money collected is only enough to pay the canoe riders at the end of every month,” said the General Manager of West Point Standard Sea and River Transport, Eric D. Kwahin.
Kwahin further disclosed that Maritime and Liberian Coast Guard run by the Armed Forces of Liberia, (AFL) conducted safe guard training for canoe riders and his office asked Maritime and AFL to help them with life jackets for the canoe riders to enhance the safety measures, but to no avail.
Speaking of risk riding without life jackets pose to passengers, Kwahin said: “There are two reasons why passengers rather cross the river in canoe instead of taking a vehicle.
The first reason is security, because when the business people or anybody crosses either of the bridges, the zogos will rob them of everything.
Even last night, we were called that one of our employees was robbed. The second reason why people ride the canoe is to cut down cost, because the fare is cheap,” he said.
In a recent conversation with Transportation Minister Angela Bush she expressed interest in that form of transportation and promised to engage the Canoe Transportation Union Authority regarding life jackets, as the crossing method involved young people who lives could be at stake.