Are we losing the battle on the road?

The figures are staggering and continue to increase, thus making road travel one of the most dangerous enterprises in the country. In the first quarter of this year alone, 3,591 accident cases have been reported out of which 3,464 were injured and 565 lives lost. Who knows, the figures could be higher since not all cases are reported to the police and not all accident victims die on the spot or soon after the accident. These days when schools reopen, parents are on tenterhooks until they hear about the safe arrival of their children in school; the same way when schools vacate, parents only heave a sigh of relief after their children have arrived home safely. Parents who have the resources and can afford it prefer to send their children to and from school since that gives them a bigger guarantee of safety. Similarly, husbands whose wives are traders and have to travel long distances to buy or sell will tell you the mental turmoil they go through until they see their loved ones again. Such is the unpredictability of road transportation in the country these days that seeing off a relation or friend embarking on a journey may seem like bidding the person a final farewell. And it happens very often. Why should this be the case? We have come a long way as a nation to have been able to surmount certain challenges including road accidents. Our roads are not the best but the number of accidents recorded on some of the best roads in the country including the Accra-Tema Motorway and the George Bush Expressway are pointers to the fact that it is time we confront the real issues. We can sum up our national calamity in four words — Carelessness, Negligence, Irresponsibility and Corruption. There are state institutions charged collectively to ensure safety on our roads. One way or another, these institutions have failed us. Our problems start at the ports, when vehicles that could be best described as metal carcasses, through some dubious means are given clearance and allowed into the country. From there, the pattern is followed until these vehicles finally find themselves on our roads. We have also ignored certain fundamental issues about road safety for selfish gain. For instance, certain vehicles are designed purposely for carrying goods or cargo. These vehicles enter the country without passenger seats but somehow, they are sent to Suame Magazine and similar workshops where fabricated seats are installed in them. They are given the final blessing by the licensing authority to carry passengers and the consequences are obvious when an accident occurs. This brings into question how effective and efficient the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) is in delivering its mandate of ensuring that only roadworthy vehicles are licensed to ply the roads, and perform the tasks they have been designed for. The DVLA is also to ensure that those who sit behind the wheels as drivers are trained, qualified and literate enough to read and understand road signs. Curiously enough, not all vehicles are roadworthy. Without even subjecting these vehicles to any technical test, one would realise by casual observation that some vehicles are death traps and should not have been allowed on the roads, let alone carry human beings. It is also common knowledge that there are many drivers who cannot read or write, have not undergone any formal training in driving, and do not possess valid driver’s licence are also driving on the roads. Some also have the licences but were not examined by the issuing authority. Is it any wonder that majority of accidents involve commercial drivers who drive more of their legs and hands without necessarily using their heads? The next in the chain is the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit (MTTU) of the Ghana Police Service which also has a great responsibility to ensure road safety in the country. The MTTU may be described as the enforcement wing in the road safety chain They are to take over from where the DVLA’s mandate ends and even check the omissions and commissions of the DVLA. The MTTU must ensure that vehicles plying the country’s roads meet acceptable standards and have certificates to that effect issued by the DVLA. Even in situations where a vehicle owner possesses a valid roadworthiness certificate from the DVLA, the MTTU has the power to act appropriately if in its estimation and judgement that vehicle is not fit to carry passengers or be on the road. The MTTU is also by statute to ensure that drivers have valid driving licences issued by the DVLA and observe all the motor traffic regulations. These include driving with caution, driving within the acceptable speed limits, not driving under the influence of alcohol or any prohibited drug and taking cognisance of other motorists and pedestrians. The big question is: ‘Have personnel of the MTTU been able to deliver their mandate to the letter?’ Before we attempt to answer that, we must first admit that the Ghana Police Service in general and the MTTU in particular have their human and logistic challenges. The MTTU has inadequate human resource and lack the tools for effective policing of the roads. They lack vehicles and other accoutrements of their trade such as radar guns to check speeding, breathalysers to check alcohol levels of drivers suspected to be driving under the influence, tow trucks to remove broken-down vehicles from the roads and ambulances to convey accident victims to the nearest medical facility. We are aware that the police have had to rely on donors for basic items such as flashlights and reflective jackets for their work. These are serious challenges which place limitations on their performance and reduce their efficiency. Notwithstanding these challenges, there is a general consensus that the MTTU could still have done better than they are doing now. We are talking about inadequate human resource, so why should MTTU personnel, sometimes numbering about 10, congregate at one place just to check ‘papers’ of drivers? Despite these checks, there are still many people driving without driving licences or using expired ones. People still drive rickety vehicles enveloped in thick smoke that impairs the vision of others but the police are unable to do anything about it. There more unregistered vehicles on the roads now even though there are regulations that are supposed to check those things but these are being ignored by the police. Motor riders do not wear crash helmets and ride past police personnel with impunity. The presence of the police does not evoke any fear in motorists because they know what to do to escape legal sanction. It is, therefore, not strange that our roads have become killing fields and on daily basis, lives are being lost and people being maimed through arbitrariness, carelessness, drunkenness, disrespect and irresponsible behaviour. Lawlessness has become a national canker which has turned this country into a jungle and nowhere is it exhibited more than on the roads. The carnage may not end soon and sermonising in the form of public education campaigns will fetch very little unless we take the bull by the horns and make the laws on road safety work. The MTTU must be well-resourced in terms of human capacity and logistics. The personnel must be disciplined, dedicated, committed and alive to their responsibilities. They must be made to realise that they are not only checking papers for its sake but they are in effect protecting life and property. Road safety, it is agreed, is a shared responsibility, therefore, individuals also have their role to play towards this end. However, the DVLA and the MTTU have a greater responsibility to keep and maintain the safety of road travel. If the DVLA, at the point of registering vehicles and issuing roadworthy certificates and driving licences will be meticulous and the MTTU will enforce the law without other considerations, that battle would be more than won. In short, if we can get rid of the four cankers — Carelessness, Negligence, Irresponsibility and Corruption — from the system we will realise that travelling by road can be not only fun but also exciting. fokofi@yahoo.co.uk kofiakordor.blogspot.com