The South Sudan Boda Boda Association is pushing for a new policy that bans the usage of ‘Senke’ motorbikes in a new move to eliminate the prevalence of eagle-like criminals also known as ‘Toronto boys’ wreaking havoc on the streets of Juba.
The leadership of the association told City Review that it plans to front a proposal to the government to formally get rid of the motorbikes currently considered fastest and flexible but facilitative to thievery by the Toronto boys.
According to the Chairperson of South Sudan Motorcyclist Boda boda Association Abraham Jok Mooch, the body will persuade the government to slam brakes on acquisition of the bikes.
“All dealers of motorbikes will be asked politely to stop the importation of Senke, with specification on which type of motorbikes they are allowed to import in the country,” Mooch added.
Mooch said Senke motorbikes which would be in the store before the ban is imposed would be sold under strict procedures as directed by the government and the association.
“If someone wants to buy a Senke which is still in the store, he should first get a permission and avail certain documents. That person will go somewhere to get a paper because they will be asked why they want to buy a senkeni in particular, and for what purpose?” he said, adding that a National Identification card would also be required to assess the age of the person buying Senke.
Mooch said it was very unfortunate that the boda boda work has been infiltrated by criminals like Toronto, who are equally victimising foreign diplomats in South Sudan, painting a gloomy picture of the country among foreigners.
“The work of Toronto is a crime and the government is looking for them and our association is also looking for them. However, we don’t have the power to arrest them but we can give information to the government that has the power to decide on necessary steps to take,” he warned.
According to him, the government has done its part in fishing out such criminal elements but more needs to be done as the group still exists. He bemoaned the miseries piled on innocent people going about their business, just to be robbed by Toronto.
“Toronto activities have terrorized our citizens; we have lost so many lives in the hands of the Toronto boys, especially in cases where a person on a motorbike refuses to give away their bags when Toronto try to grab, dragging them off the bike and killing the person in the process,” Mooch lamented.
Toronto’s actions have tarnished the image of commercial motorbike operators in Juba and the line between the two groups became blurry as group also operates under the disguise of boda boda riders.
Besides Toronto, boda boda operators are also a target of serial thieves, who abduct, torture, and leave the riders at the brink of death after robbing them their belongings.
In an exclusive interview with City Review last week, a 38-years-old Chiriga Rashid Bilali, a Ugandan motorcyclist explained challenges he goes through as he carries out his daily work in the streets of Juba.
Rashid remembered the day he was abducted by a group of thieves who had guns and took him to an unknown location.
“The challenges I face as a boda boda worker is that there are people whose work is to capture [boda] boda men sometimes in daylight and even at night, once they do that they will take your motorbike. I recall last year in January 6 in Nyakuron West when I was abducted by men who had guns, and took my bike,” he explained.