How acquiring a driving permit is changing

Mr Siraje Mwesigye, 49, is nostalgic. He says that he misses the old days when all that was required of him to get a driving permit, was a passport sized photo and money. “The permits used to be issued by Uganda Revenue Authority. Whereas one could go to their offices in person, very many people employed agents to undertake the process on their behalf. One would give him your passport sized photos and about Shs200,000. This amount was inclusive of his commission and the permit fees,” reminisces Mwesigye.

That was the past. Today, driving permits are issued by Face Technologies. The company is a recent entrant to the list of stakeholders in charge of the operation of driving permits, namely; Uganda Revenue Authority, Uganda Police and the Inspectorate of Vehicles. It was contracted by the Ministry of Transport and Works in 2003 – and started operating in 2005 – to design, print and supply computerised permits in the country.

Lynda Minega, the company’s Operations Manager says that Face Technologies was
brought on board to set in order a flawed system. “There were many middlemen who were
fleecing ignorant members of the public. They used to exaggerate the fees as well as the procedure to make it appear as a tedious one. So we came in to weed them out. These people would go as far as procuring fake permits for their clients even after receiving money for their services,” Minega says.

Minega adds that under the new arrangement physical interaction between an applicant and all the stakeholders is a must. “We have to take an individual’s biometrics. This involves scanning their fingers to verify their finger prints, taking their passport sized photographs, and their electronic signature which appears on the permit. This can only be done in the presence of the applicant,” states Minega adding that: “At the commencement of our operation, we had some of our staff who were frustrating our strategies by colluding with the brokers to keep the latter in business.
Restricted entry
Minega adds, “We learnt of their actions and expelled them. Currently, entrance to our Kampala premises is restricted to only those who are carrying documents which show that they are here for a transaction. We intend to employ this at the rest of our seven centres around the country. It is another measure to keep away the “fixers” from hanging around and preying on vulnerable applicants.”

New guidelines
The bid to streamline the system has seen, the Inspectorate of Vehicle, another stakeholder, receive new operation guidelines. Alan Atuheire, the Officer in Charge at the Naguru Testing Centre says that the centre only endorses testees from driving schools.

“The first thing we ask a person when they walk in, is about the driving school they have been attending. If they do not have one, then we show them a list of the different driving schools and ask them to seek a recommendation from one. That recommendation is in form of a certificate of competence. The rationale behind this move is that in case of accidents we can visit our records and find out the driving school whose former students are the most linked to the accidents occurring in the country or a particular district. Then we can search out a way of handling that trend,” says Atuheire.

Alan notes that many people shun driving tests. He says that this attitude has also been exploited by brokers who would connive with some personnel in the inspectorate to get the learning drivers around the system.
“The word test stirs nervousness in many people’s minds. One may have been performing well during the learning process, but when the time for the test is up, they become fidgety and fail. This inspired them to fish for people who can help them to beat the system.

However, we have restructured the inspectorate and the number of people getting permits without being subjected to the tests is now low.”

Police’s involvement
The Uganda police, also a stakeholder, has been at the rigorous end of neatening the system. The force, among other traffic related responsibilities, is charged with ensuring that drivers are in possession of valid driving permits whenever they are behind the steering wheel.

In an era where anything can be duplicated, the force has been inundated with arrests of drivers in possession of fake driving permits.

At Nasser Road, for as much as Shs100,000, one can walk away with a phony permit.
Claire Ansasire a staff at the Traffic inspectorate says that the police has since acquired gadgets to smoothen their task of telling apart genuine permits from the fake ones.

“Every permit has its unique permit number. When you enter that number into the gadget, it can be able to verify whether it is a forged permit or not,” she says.

What it takes to get a permit

You pay Shs49,000 at Uganda Revenue Authority (URA). Of this amount, Shs24,000 is for a learners’ permit. Shs25,000 is for test fees.
2.You then pay Shs30,000 at Face Technologies. Your biometrics are taken and you are issued a learners’ permit.
3.You take this to the Inspectorate of Vehicles (IOV) for a driving test.
4.When you pass the test, you are informed. Likewise when you fail, you are told. For the successful learner, the IOV documents your results and sends them to URA in three days.
5.At the lapse of the three days you go back to URA and pay for a “full’ permit. You either pay Shs60,000 for three years or Shs56,000 for one year.
6.Three or five days later, you go to Face Technologies and pay Shs60,000. You are issued a temporary drivers’ permit which is valid for one month.
7.A week later, you can pick your new permit.

Renewing a permit
Noteworthy: One in possession on a three year driving permit has two years during which one can renew their permit. One in possession of a one year driving permit has four years during which one can renew their permit. If any of these two does not renew their respective permits within the respective periods, the penalty is for them to start the whole permit application process afresh.

Replacing a lost permit
1.You report to police and get a letter.
2.You place an advert in the newspapers.
3.You submit these two to URA and pay Shs41,000.
4.After three to four working days, you pay Shs30,000 at Face technologies upon which you are given a temporary driving permit
5.You pick the driving permit card at the end of a week.

Penalties
According to section 35 of the Traffic and Road Safety act, a driver is expected to produce their driving permit, upon request by a police officer, within 48 hours.
Claire Ansasire a staff officer at the Traffic Inspectorate says that under this law, if a driver does not have his/her permit on him/herself, he/she is taken to the nearest police station and given a form with which they present their permit, before the lapse of the 48 hours. Drivers are ignorant of this law. They often pay for penalties even before this time ends. On the other hand if one is driving yet they do not own a driving permit, Ansasire says that the penalty is Shs100,000 for a motor vehicle and Shs40,000 for a motorcycle.

Comments from some people

Geoffrey Kayemba - Special hire driver
This new system is very expensive. Renewing is as costly as acquiring a new driving permit. How can you explain that I have to pay Shs60,000 for both a new permit and renewing an old one? Under the previous arrangement, all that was required of one was to take their old permit, and it would be stamped to indicate that you had renewed it. This was done for a very small amount compared to what is paid currently.

Apollo Akatuhurira - Salesperson
Face Technologies is efficient but their charges are high. If you can afford to pay the fees then you can rest assured that you will receive your driving permit at or before the expiration of the period of time that you have been told. Also, you will rarely find congestion at their offices. My problem is that they charge an arm and a leg for their cards.

John Ndyomugenyi - National Chairman of UTODA
Fake permits had flooded the transport industry. Anyone would forge a permit. The photos that were used then were not computerised. So, you would simply attach your passport sized photo against another person’s bio data. This is now history because Face Technologies takes the photos itself. There are no shortcuts in the system. This is good because it ensures that there are only competent drivers on the road which translates to fewer accidents.

Nyanzi Dumba - Hair dresser
Less money is spent on bribes. During the earlier structure, you would have to bribe about three Uganda Revenue Authority officers before you would eventually get your permit. Today, the only people you may have to bribe in the process of getting a permit are those who conduct the test driving. I have not given a bribe to a Face Technologies staff nor heard of a colleague who has bribed one, yet they do what you expect of them.

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