Tokpa-Tokpa: The other symbol of the mess in Benin

They are a necessary evil for many citizens. For Beninese living in Porto-Novo, Calavi, Ouidah or Godomey with limited means, borrowing the tokpa-tokpa to reach Cotonou vice versa is a godsend. But these cheap means of transport sow disorder on the tracks.

Loading and unloading outside parks, They do not spend days when we observe cases of bad behavior on the roads of Benin. In full circulation, the drivers of these vehicles can stop to look for the customer “really, what the tokpa do tokpa is dangerous. This morning, one of them almost ran over me. I'm in my traffic lane, but the guy hugged me, he hugged me until… Fortunately, I instinctively braked » enrages a user who denounces a driver, author of un-Catholic conduct on the Cotonou-Porto-Novo axis. “Even the zémidjan do not do like them. No turn signals before stopping. All they have to do is see a user standing on the side of the road, the apprentice alerts his driver by shouting… stop stop stop and presto. This last, without paying attention to other users, maneuver the vehicle vigorously. The same scenario can repeat itself all along the route and all day long », says Jean Gontran.

What about the condition of the buses ?

From afar, the noise emitted by the purrs of the engine testifies very much to their age. From close, these United States, Germany or France goodbye are old carcasses, almost wrecks just good to be crushed but it rolls in the tropics to the chagrin of compliance with road safety standards. If the original seats have given way to DIY, impossible to find the seat belt inside, fire-fighting device and others. Just scrap metal with a motor on the move. The drivers of these buses ; here's another pair of sleeves. Often in a secondary state, just look on their faces to get an idea of ​​who they would be. Not far from that of individuals on amphetamine. Very energetic and always on the attack, they are easily insulted and ready to fight at the slightest prank. Some say that many of them do not have a driver's license. To limit their damage, the prefect of the Littoral Alain Orounla had taken the decision to limit their shuttles outside the city center, few months ago. But the Minister of Decentralization and Local Governance dismissed it.. And since, the mess has started again.

Arnaud ACAKPO (Coll)