Parliament has today rejected the proposed amendments in the Traffic and Road safety Bill, 2021. If passed, the bill would require car owners to pay an annual fee for possessing a car.
The vice chairperson of the Finance committee, Hon. Jane Avur said that the new proposal to have fees paid for possession of a motor vehicle is double taxation.
“The committee recommends that government considers indirect taxes. All proposed amendments should be rejected,” said Hon. Avur.
If the Bill had been passed an annual licence fee for all motor vehicles was going to be introduced.
A person shall not own or possess a motor vehicle, trailer or engineering plant or use it on a road, unless the motor vehicle, trailer or engineering plant is licensed under this Traffic and Road Safety Act,” states the bill.
The motorist license fee is not new to many, a decade ago it was illegal for motorists to be found on the road without the license and car inspections were carried out to curb the defaulters however the fee was halted and the charges levied on the fuel charges because the licence fee was being defaulted by many people.