By Mabinty M. Kamara and Saio marrah
People commuting from Freetown to the provinces have expressed dissatisfaction over the manner in which state bus tickets are being handled by road transport corporation (SLRTC) officials at the bus stations.
Many travelers prefer making the long distance journeys on the state buses because they are much safer and more comfortable in that they are not overloaded like the private commercial buses.
However some passengers have accused the ticket dealers of fraud, accusing them of selling at inflated prices under the counter, making it hard if not impossible to get for those who sometimes queue up for hours.
Lamin Sheriff, a Kenema-bound traveler Politico met the Shell Company bus terminal in the east end of Freetown, said: “I prefer travelling with the government buses because the drivers are more careful and it is convenient as well. But they have started playing bad games”.
The frequent traveler went on: “I came here since 5 o’clock this morning waiting in a long queue only for them to come and sell, not even up to number 13 which is where I was. And they said there were no more tickets”.
Looking and sounding frustrated, Sheriff said he was only “lucky to buy a Bo ticket and when I get to Bo, I can join another vehicle to Kenema”. He said when he asked he could not get a ticket to Kenema, “they told me the Kenema bus is already full but I don’t know where they sold the remaining tickets for the over twenty seats when those of us in the queue couldn’t get.”
Ali Badara Conteh is another commuter to Kenema who was scouting for the next comfortable vehicle at Shell Company since he couldn’t acquire the bus ticket.
“They keep the tickets so that they sell them at a higher price. I heard somebody say they showed him a ticket for Le 50,000 instead of Le 30,000. I was praying for that person to reach me so that the government would hear about us but they know the faces they approach. That is why we are like this in this country – people undermining the system for their own selfish interests,” he said.
The situation at Shell according to sources is not different to that at the Central Bus station at Water Street where, according to sources, a ticket to Kono was being sold at le 70,000 instead of the normal Le 40,000, after they had been told there were no more tickets available for the dozens in the queue.
When Politico contacted the Marketing and Public Relations Manager, Mohamed Zoker at the Authority, he referred us to the sales managers saying they had authorized them to sell the tickets to travellers so if they were doing otherwise, then they should be in the right position to explain their actions.
He added that they had not pre-booked the tickets meaning they should be sold on the day of travel on a first-come-first-served basis.
“Well I am not at the Bus Station and our staff are under strict instructions not to do any pre-booking. Tickets are sold right in the morning when the busses are at the station. So the issue of saying that there were no tickets I do not know if you gathered any evidence on those guys who were selling” Zoker said.
“The people who are selling the ticket there should have been the best people to explain. What you are telling me now is news to me,” he added.
But one of the sources Politico spoke to at the central bus station, said she bought the ticket the previous evening and that she was just waiting to board the vehicle.
When Politico approached sales agents at the Bus Station at Water Street for comment on the issue, they declined to comment referring us to the SLRTC head office instead.
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