Kumasi, Feb 22, GNA - The police in Ashanti, at the weekend, arreste= d 40 motorists in a special operation, mounted to clamp down on the misuse of trade license number plates.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Patrick Eden Tambillah, the Regional Commander, said some of the offenders were found, carrying more than two passengers, with others driving beyond the legally prescribed hours. There were, also, those who had wrongly fixed the number plates. DCOP Tambillah told a press briefing in Kumasi that the exercise was preceded by a month-long education campaign by the police.

He reminded motorists that, using unregistered vehicles for commercial purposes, funerals, weddings and carrying children to and from school, amon= g other, was unlawful.

He called for an intensification of education by the Driver Vehicle an= d License Authority (DVLA) on the use of the trade license plate. The Regional Commander said this was necessary to help bring some sanity on the roads and aid the fight to check robbery, hit-and-run and other criminal activities. Police Superintendent G.D. Hlordzi, the Regional Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU) Commander, said the offenders would be brought to justice.