The deployment of a more secured system which will replace the existing technology being used for certification of vehicles and drivers is part of measures being introduced to avoid duplication of drivers’ licences and road worthy stickers.

According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the DVLA, Mr Kwasi Agyeman Busia, the authority’s technology security had been compromised, making it easier for middle men, popularly referred to as “Goro Boys” to issue fake licences and road worthy stickers to prospecting clients.

That, he said, had accounted for many rickety and faulty vehicles that emitted hazardous carbons, plying the country’s roads with the requisite certifications.

Mr Busia, who spoke to the media in Tema on the sidelines of a training workshop organised by the authority for its technical staff, indicated that if the present system was working properly, there would be no job for such middle men (Goro Boys) in the DVLA’s operations. 

“The system in place presently could let people copy files and duplicate them by issuing fake certificates and licences”, he said.

He pointed out that the authority, in reforming and reorganising its operations, was determined to entirely eliminate human interactions in its processes.

“I have no doubt in my mind that the present system we are using is compromised. Something is not right, especially when you can find certifications out there that looks close to the original that the authority issues out”, he added.

Training

The training was aimed at equipping technical staff of the DVLA on the technologies that have been deployed in vehicle testing by private vehicle testing companies.

He said the authority had outsourced some of its testing operations to private vehicle testing centres of which DVLA officials regulated and,therefore, there was the need for training in their use. 

“These technologies being used at these centres are quite sophisticated, hence the need to train our officers so they are able to interpret what the private entities are doing”, Mr Busia explained.

Mr Busia expressed the hope that the public would support the DVLA in its quest to eliminate fraud within the licence acquisition, vehicle registration and certification processes.