Public transport is drifting – Congo Independent

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Government ‘ignored’ promise to pay nearly $1 million a month society Congo Transport (TRANSCO) As fuel and spare parts subsidies. Public operators do not Only about 250 buses remain. Kinshasa covers an area of 9,965 square kilometers, which is one-third the size of Belgium. It is home to 18 million souls.. The Kinshasa region needs at least 3,000 buses.

Gaston Mutamba Lukusa

The Congolese Transport Company (TRANSCO) is almost bankrupt due to problems with the financing of the government fuel supply. We must add mismanagement. Hell and damnation! For those who don’t know, in order to compensate TRANSCO for the ridiculous prices charged (5 to 10 times cheaper), the government promised to pay the company nearly 1 million dollars per month as fuel and spare parts subsidies. But as often happens in all our neighboring countries and countries coveted by China, these are just empty promises. This explains why, today, crowds gather at bus stations looking for ways to get to work, school, home, the market, church to pray, etc. Every action causes a reaction. This is 3^th Newton’s laws. Private carriers also came to the party and laid down the law. One person’s misfortune brings happiness to others and vice versa. According to my friend who knows what goes on in every corner of run-down Kinshasa, private airlines set prices according to the law of supply and demand. At the “parking lot” (bus station), it is the “loaders” (coilers) who take charge. If you don’t pay, it’s walking. Even shared taxis, motorcycle taxis, have adjusted their prices accordingly. Prices vary according to the time of day and the crowd. They can go from single to double! Stupefied and shuddering! This explains that the price of transportation managed by the city hall is sometimes only one-tenth of what is needed here. Commuters have to pay before getting on the bus. Sometimes you have to struggle to get a place and endure insults. There are also people who ignore the pull and enter through the window. As if this is not enough, passengers are packed together like sardines in a can. In the rickety vehicles, they often have to face not only pickpockets, but also the sermons of indescribable revival church pastors, masters of the art of saving the souls of the dead and filling the pockets of the living.Birds of a feather flock together. Sapelipet! My friend is crazy and claims that one day a popular revolt will start from these parking lots. It is in these places that everything is talked about, everything is sold to the great joy of gossip and complicity. Commuters talk not only about their common misfortune, but also about dance, music, mourning, football matches, politics, etc. According to my all-knowing friend, TRANSCO has only about 250 buses that can operate in the city of Kinshasa or other areas. This is obviously not enough for a city with an area of 9,965 square kilometers, a third of Belgium, and a population of 18 million. At least 3,000 buses are needed to facilitate public transportation. During the triumph of Mobotism, the city of Kinshasa had an efficient transport service. There were respected official bus stations, routes and timetables. There were several transport companies: OTCZ, SOTRAZ, STK, CITY TRAIN. But mismanagement and looting in the 1990s led to the bankruptcy and disappearance of these companies. Faced with the current traffic congestion and the deterioration of urban roads, public authorities should consider marking and using the Congo River as a thoroughfare. Unfortunately, all those who have tried to do so have quickly given up due to administrative and police harassment. We say that mistakes do not negate the efforts made.

General ML