Drivers, Passengers laud ban on use of phones and ‘okada’

The untimely and shocking demise of former President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills Tuesday appears to have temporarily swayed Ghanaians from other issues of public interest.

Some of the issues, with legislative backing, had come up and were being discussed by the media, political and social commentators even as officialdom ensured strict adherence to and observance of such legislations by the populace for national development.

Two particular issues that had generated public concern due to their devastating effects on life and property, as well as their negative implications on the nation’s economy were the official ban on the use of mobile phones to receive or make calls whilst driving and the use of “motorcycles for commercial purposes, otherwise known as Okada”.

A number of motorists and transport operators the Ghana News Agency (GNA) interviewed last Monday in Sunyani Municipality hailed the Legislative Instrument (Road Traffic Regulation, 2012, LI2180) passed by Parliament Wednesday July 4, 2012, to ensure the prevention of avoidable and unnecessary motor accidents on roads.

Mr. Stephen Abukari, Brong-Ahafo, Regional Depot Manager of Metro Mass Transit Limited (MMT) stated that before the enactment of the LI2180, the company had a rule that none of its drivers should use the mobile phone whilst driving to avoid being distracted.

It was an agreement between the company and the drivers, as part of a code of conduct for the latter, but now that it had become a legal instrument, the company had warned the drivers not to make or receive calls whilst behind the steering wheel, he said.

Mr. Abukari said any driver of MMT could only use the mobile phone in case of breakdown, obstruction on the way or any emergency situations, emphasizing the company appreciated the LI2180 because it would let their drivers understand that they were not being intimidated.

He explained that the company was only abiding by international code of driving to conform to standards in the transport and motor industry worldwide. It has also come to support LI 953, Section 73, Sub-Section 1 of the Road Traffic Act 1974 that prohibited hawking, selling and preaching in public buses, he added.

Mr. Leslie Yaw Amankwah, Secretary of the Sunyani branch of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) lauded the legislation as “very good”, saying it would assist in reducing road accidents.

A call received by a driver might be “shocking news” that could cause panic in him and consequently lead to an accident, he said, adding, the branch was waiting for directives from the union headquarters in Accra to begin educative programs with their members, to observe the legislation.

Mr. Adam Mohammed, a driver with the GNA in Sunyani noted that beside the use of both hands and legs, driving required the use of all senses, hence it was improper for a driver at work to use mobile phone because one hand could not effectively control the steering wheel.

Mr. Alex Amofah Appiah, a Cocobod driver in Sunyani, said the passage of the LI2180 “is good and timely because it will help the entire society and save all of us from unnecessary and avoidable accidents”.

Mr. Joseph Mensah, a passenger on board a commercial bus, affirmed that driving demanded full concentration by drivers and not a divided attention because when a vehicle falls into a pothole and the driver is on phone, he could lose control of the steering and a fatal accident could occur.**