Judiciary urged to fast track prosecution of recalcitrant drivers

Cape Coast, Oct. 14, GNA - Ms Catherine Hamilton, Central Regional Coordinator of the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), on Wednesday appealed to the judiciary to fast track the prosecution of drivers who negligently caused road accidents, to serve as a deterrent. She said 90 per cent of road accidents in the country could be attributed to indiscipline on the part of drivers, most of who were let off the hook when people in authority interfered with their arrest. Ms Hamilton said this when she addressed a stakeholders meeting at Cape Coast to outline strategies the Commission had drawn up for the last quarter of the year, to help reverse the situation.

Ms Hamilton expressed regret that many drivers were careless when they reached pedestrian crossings resulting in knocking down people, most often school children. She said this was one of the major problems in the region and urged drivers to consider the peak hours children crossed the road and take precautions.

She said road accidents should be considered a public health issue due to the number of lives lost and number of people maimed and said the situation had an intense toll on the socio-economic development of the nation.

Ms Hamilton described as "unfortunate," the fact that more than 1,000 people have so far died through motor accidents between January and September nationwide this year, with 144 of the deaths occurring in the region.

She said a total of 832 vehicles had been involved in accidents in the region during the period, with 630 people injured, 195 of them seriously. She said to address this, mobile phone numbers have been provided for the public to report offending drivers, while plans were afoot for the formation of a "vibrant taskforce" to educate drivers on traffic regulations.

Ms Hamilton said all stakeholders such as personnel from the Ghana Private Road Transport Union, Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU), Information Services Department, chiefs, opinion leaders and local authorities would also be engaged to help intensify education on road safety.

The NRSC, she said, would organize refresher courses for personnel of the MTTU to be abreast of road traffic regulations, and NCCE personnel engaged to educate the public through drama. Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Paul Aduhene, Regional Commander of the MTTU, expressed concern over the recurrence of the problem despite the several interventions. He said this was due to the lack of co-operation on the part of drivers and some people in authority. Mr Alex Martels Hughes, Regional Fire Officer urged all drivers to do routine maintenance checks on their vehicles to avoid accidents. 14 Oct. 09