One week following a 15% surge in fuel prices, transporters are grappling to cope with the repercussions. The umbrella union, Cawof, submitted a letter to the Prime Minister’s office on Friday. The Cameroon Workers Forum, comprising 11 labor confederations, urges the government to halt the fuel price hike and initiate negotiations within eight days, threatening strike action otherwise.
Since the fuel price increase in Cameroon, transporters describe themselves as “strangled”. Despite the soaring fuel costs, they are legally barred from raising their fares. Whether taxi drivers, intercity bus operators, or freight truck drivers, syndicates implore the government for immediate consultations to review fare prices and implement promised support measures.
On the ground, a union leader asserts that tensions are escalating. “We’re tired of mediating fights between drivers and passengers, and between drivers and their employers, as they struggle to make ends meet, leading to altercations,” he laments.
“Finding Solutions is Imperative”
“There’s an urgent need to find solutions, to readjust taxi and intercity transport fares and all because it’s causing problems across the board,” warns Patrice Samen, President of the Federation of Professional Drivers Unions of Cameroon. Readjusting implies raising the standardized intercity transport price in Cameroon, which has remained unchanged for years at 14 francs per kilometer. He also suggests increasing the city taxi fare, currently set at 300 francs during the day and 350 at night.
Thomas Ondoua, President of the National Union of Urban, Intercity, and Road Transport Drivers of Cameroon (Synactuircam), proposes raising the intercity transport rate to 16 FCFA “so that operators can juggle.” “We’re not even saying so they can thrive, but so they can just manage,” he adds.
Negotiations
Speaking in unison, both unionists lament the government’s failure to consult with social partners before announcing the fuel price hike. They explained that they were only invited to a meeting on Friday, February 2, at the Hydrocarbons Price Stabilization Fund (CSPH), where they were informed that the decision to readjust pump prices had been made.