Missive from parts of Africa

A light hearted and sometimes serious look at moving 6000km into a place in Africa: April 2007. Promoted back to South Africa, the missive will continue to track my foray's into deepest Africa as and when I get there.

Name:
Location: Joburg, Africa, South Africa

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

What is it with me and the local cops?

What is it with me and the local constabulary?

Once again I have fallen foul of the law and ended up missing a meeting over it!

As a starting point, we have adopted a branding policy and I am quite happily driving a vehicle with very smart company stickers on the side of the door. The lads in JHB even went so far as to get me a spare wheel cover branded with the company logo.

The car looks really smart

The car with the logo becomes a “company vehicle”

“Company Vehicles” need a sticker paying some sort of tax to the Accra Metro Authority

The next point to note was written about in my first blog when I arrived in Ghana. At every robot and broken down truck there is a plethora of hawkers selling all kinds of stuff. Oh yes and the ubiquitous beggars that one finds in Africa. As they are a tad in your face, I have grown immune to them at the window and tend to ignore them, lost in thought about sex and other stuff.

The final point, which led to the confusion was, all over Ghana the local fuzz wear black uniforms. In Accra they wear white shirts.

Now you will understand the confusion when I ignore a white shirted lad knocking on the passenger side window. You will also fully understand when I drive away from said white shirted local as the traffic moves. And yes…. You will also fully understand that said white shirted local lad will get somewhat agitated by my total ignorance of his position of authority.

The lad then decided to come to the driver’s side and once again attempt to gain my attention. (He was safe to chase me on foot as the Accra traffic is foul and does not move very far very fast). I decided to open my window and chat to him when I noted that he was in uniform and was looked somewhat flustered. He then proceeded to kak all over me for not stopping. He did not appreciate my point that there are so many bloody people trying to stop me, I did not quite differentiate him from everyone else.

Asking me for my driver’s license and car papers at which he looked over for a second before asking me for my AMA papers.

Been a rather frustrated bunny, I asked him what the hell AMA papers were. A small slanging match ensued as I was convinced I was once again been knocked by the cops for money. I mean bugger it – they get enough from me in Tarkwa, why the hell do I have to support two police forces.

The lad however was suitably unimpressed and promptly proceeded to arrest me for failure to stop and failing to display the called for AMA sticker.

After doing the chirp and realising that my sarcasm was blowing straight over his head, I then phoned Zack to find out what this lad was asking for and was I (once again) been taken for a ride.

Zack advised me that my now really pissed off white shirted lad was 100% correct and I was officially in shite.

GHC500,000 later I left the local charge office with a AMA sticker and a small notation in a his cash book that makes GHC72,000 looks like GHC 500,000

Seems like the Accra cops and myself have already established a relationship.

2 Comments:

Blogger Antoine said...

Talking about the dog Kappiahat, that is another blog all by itself.

*chuckle*

6:00 AM  
Blogger Esther said...

I bet he wasn't impressed when u compared him to being one of the streethawkers. You do have a certain talent with local cops *chuckle* At least you didn't spend any time in jail ;)

1:55 PM  

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