Monrovia-On Monday, May 12, 2025, commercial drivers across Liberia’s including the Western Region began a Go-Slow action in protest of what they describe as increasing police harassment and the imposition of excessive traffic fines.
According to information, the planned action is being organized by the Western Region Commercial Drivers Union. The union’s Vice President for Operations, Varney Kear disclosed that the protest is a response to what he calls an “alarming situation” involving the Liberia National Police (LNP) and the Liberia Traffic Management (LTM).
On Monday, the situation paralyzed every commercial activity as commuters traveling from one end to another were unable to move from one area to another. Drivers in Cape Mount, Bomi, Bong and other parts of the country refused to put their vehicles on the road for commercial purposes.
The situation also affected Monrovia, the main capital of Liberia as several commercial drivers refused to put their vehicle on the road-a situation many described as embarrassing. How long the strike action by commercial will last is yet to be established but Liberians are concerned about the unfolding situation in the country.
Speaking recently about the police harassment, “Our drivers are being issued multiple tickets for a single violation, in some cases receiving three separate fines from different officers for the same incident,” Kear stated. “This is not America. This is Liberia. We want enforcement of our own traffic laws, not practices copied from elsewhere,” said Varney Kear, Vice President for Operations of the Commercial Union.
Prior to yesterday’s strike action, Jeremiah M. Sesay, the spokesperson for the union, expressed frustration with what he described as a growing culture of abuse and exploitation by traffic officers.
“We have come here today to call on the attention of the national government, particularly the Liberia National Police, Liberia Traffic Management, and other relevant authorities, about the consistent harassment of commercial drivers,” Sesay said.
He cited a case where a commercial driver was issued traffic tickets totaling US$150, roughly L$30,000, for a single violation, while the driver reports only L$3,000 in daily income. “How do you expect a driver making L$3,000 a day to pay an L$30,000 ticket?” Sesayquestioned.
The union planned to present a petition listing of three key grievances supported by evidence, to relevant government authorities. Other union members also echoed similar sentiment with Kear, stating that there are too many checkpoints along the Bomi, Cape Mount highway. They called for urgent reforms and greater accountability among traffic enforcement officers.
Yesterday’s strike action affected transportation services across several counties in the region including Bomi, Grand Cape Mount, Bong and Gbarpolu Counties leading to delays for commuters and economic disruptions.
Authorities of the Liberia National Police and the Liberia Traffic Management have yet to respond to the union’s claims and to go-slow action that begun yesterday.
