Dumelo offers free bus rides to stranded commuters

Member of Parliament for Ayawaso West Wuogon, John Dumelo, organised and paid for buses to transport stranded commuters from Okponglo and Shiashie on Wednesday evening.

The intervention came at dusk, a time many commuters described as the most difficult period to secure transport, with buses already filled to capacity and refusing to stop.

Scores of people were left standing by the roadside, visibly frustrated and uncertain about how to get home.

Mr Dumelo later shared a video on X documenting the exercise and explaining his decision. “I organized and paid for all commuters this evening headed to Lapaz from Okponglo and also Shiashie to Madina,” he wrote.

“This is a short-term measure and I am working on a longer solution. Thanks so much Metro Mass!!! #idey4u.”

The move followed a viral video posted by blogger Sika Official, showing first-year students of the University of Ghana stranded after lectures.

In the video, students were seen waiting for long periods at the Okponglo and Legon First Bus Stop, unable to secure transport to their destinations.

Sika Official described the situation as troubling, noting that “several University of Ghana students found themselves stranded yesterday evening, struggling to secure transportation home after lectures.”

Mr Dumelo responded directly under the post with a brief message: “Say no more,” shortly before the buses were deployed.

While many social media users applauded the MP’s swift response, others questioned the sustainability of such interventions.

One user commented that the gesture was “commendable but not a solution to the transport crisis,” while another argued that “systemic problems require policy action, not one-off fixes.”

Some commuters who benefited from the free rides expressed gratitude. A commuter at Okponglo said, “If not for these buses, I don’t know how I would have gotten home tonight. We were here for almost an hour.”

Daily commuting within Accra has increasingly become an arduous task, with workers and students frequently reporting long waits, overcrowded buses, and rising transport costs.

Many are now calling on the government to take swift and coordinated action to address the persistent public transport challenges and ease the burden on residents who rely on buses to move across the city.