The Vice President of Ghana and 2024 Presidential Candidate of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, is pushing for a major overhaul in driver licence renewal policies.
He proposes extending the renewal period to every eight or 10 years, arguing that the current two-year cycle is unnecessary.
While Ghanaian passports are renewed every 10 years, driver licences require renewal every two years.
The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, believes the current system is inconvenient for drivers and must be extended.
Addressing chiefs and other stakeholders at Boadua in the Akwatia Constituency of the Eastern Region, Dr Bawumia said, “Drivers are here. Today, the driver’s licence expires every two years. Let us extend it, be it eight years or 10 years. Let us make sure you can have a driver’s license without having to renew it every year. It does not make sense, and so by the grace of God we would make changes”.
According to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) which is mandated to promote good driving standards and ensure the use of road-worthy vehicles, all driver licence holders must renew or validate their licences every two (2) years from the date of issue.
Renewal dates are stated behind the licence card.
As a result, motorists suffer a lot of harassment from both DVLA officials and the police over the non-renewal of their licenses.