The decision was advanced to Lusa by the president of the Association of Motorcyclists and Transporters of Angola (Amotrang), Bento Rafael, one of the organizations present at the meeting that brought together 22 associations and cooperatives of motorbike taxi drivers and truck drivers this morning to take a stance on the measures announced by the GPL , which are suspended for 90 days while meetings take place with representatives of these professional classes.
"We are going to present a proposal to the GPL to revoke these positions", announced Bento Rafael.
According to the association leader, despite the three-month moratorium on the GPL so that professionals could prepare and the creation of a technical group to analyze measures to reorganize traffic in the capital, the organizations concluded that they must request its revocation.
The proposal will be delivered to the Government on Wednesday and on Thursday Amotrang will participate in a meeting with GPL in which it intends to discuss this proposal.
Asked about a possible adherence to the demonstration called for Saturday by the Union of Motorcycle Taxi Drivers of Angola (UMA), Bento Rafael stated that Amotrang and the federation understand that, as long as the GPL is open to hearing the associations' position, this should not happen.
"We should not yet think about demonstrations until we receive the result of this latest proposal that we are going to make. We should not create an environment of disorder, as long as the provincial government is open to listening to us and receiving our position", he replied.
As for the revocation request, he considered it to be "very important", as it will allow the measures to be immediately annulled, if accepted.
"We want to go all the way in the negotiations", he stressed, admitting that if the GPL's response to the federation's intentions is negative, they will take other positions.
"We will meet again to decide on the best possible solution in case of non-acceptance", said Bento Rafael.
Last week, the Provincial Government of Luanda announced a package of measures to improve traffic and reduce the number of accidents, which includes restrictions on the circulation and parking hours of heavy goods vehicles and on the access of motorcycle taxis to certain roads.
In relation to the timetable for the circulation of heavy goods vehicles, the period is established between 9pm and 6am, from Monday to Friday, and from 12pm to 5am, on Saturdays and Sundays.
Motorcycle taxis will be prohibited from circulating on the main roads in Luanda, and may continue to operate on secondary and tertiary roads.
Faced with protest from motorcycle taxi drivers, who even organized a spontaneous protest in downtown Luanda, the GPL backed down, giving a deadline of 90 days to implement the measures and promoting clarification sessions with sector associations.
Motorbikes are one of the most popular means of travel in Luanda, and are also used to transport passengers, a motorcycle taxi service known as "kupapata".
The measures were justified by the growing number of motorcycle taxi drivers operating in Luanda and the road accidents in which they are involved.
