The Chief Executive Officer of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), Julius Neequaye Kotey, has revealed that nearly five per cent of vehicle number plates currently in circulation in Ghana are fake.
Mr. Kotey made the disclosure in an interview on Accra-based TV3, emphasising the need to centralise the embossing of number plates under a single authorised firm to enhance security and protect motorists.
He explained that number plates are sensitive security documents and should not be produced without proper oversight.
“In terms of security, it will help the Ghanaian consumer. You don’t just allow anyone, anywhere to emboss number plates. That number plate you are embossing is a security document, so we need to be cautious and circumspect about who embosses number plates and for whom,” he said.
According to the DVLA boss, internal data shows that close to five per cent of vehicles registered in the system are using counterfeit plates obtained through illegal means.
He noted that some fraudsters take advantage of vehicles written off in accidents by copying their registration details and producing duplicate plates.
“There are several ways they use to get the number plates. Sometimes they move through police stations. Cars involved in accidents that are beyond repair, they look at their numbers and go and emboss. They also go to farmlands where farm equipment doesn’t come back onto the streets and emboss their plates. Others photocopy customs documents and use the same numbers on vehicles that did not pay duty,” he explained.
Mr. Kotey said the rollout of new DVLA plates fitted with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips will help address the challenge.
“We’re going to do away with all this, because there’s a cloning detector as part of the system. There are RFID billboards which will be mounted on various highways. If you pass with a number that is not in our system, it sends a signal to our command center.
“The new toll booth is coming. We are in touch with the Ghana Highway Authority, and we need RFID chip-embedded number plates to be able to communicate with the toll system that is coming.”
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