OPINION: We Can ‘Postpone’ Deaths On Our Roads By Bringing Sanity

Two days ago, 8 people died in a road accident along the Meru-Nairobi highway.

A combination of factors has made road transport an extremely risky affair.

These include poor roads, lack of maintenance, drink driving, speeding, and culture of corruption that makes the police look the other way when traffic offences are committed.

Even the enactment of stiff laws and a host of other measures have proved futile, doing little to ease the bloodletting.

The big losers, more often than not, are our most vulnerable members of society – especially women and children. Those who find themselves suddenly widowed or orphaned sometimes also have to deal with greedy and ruthless relatives who descend on the grieving families seeking to grab whatever assets they can get.

Some of those who cheat death remain maimed for life. Their wives, mothers and other relatives are then expected to mercifully take care of them for the rest of their lives. This pushes the affected women and families deeper into poverty as the cost of medication, visits to the hospital and lost productivity take their toll.

Worldwide, nearly 1.3 million lives are lost yearly due to road traffic accidents. Up to 91 per cent of these deaths occur in low and middle-income countries. Of course, the five EAC partner states belong to this category.

TRANSPORT SYSTEM OVERHAUL

To achieve the UN-stated goal of reducing road traffic fatalities by 50 per cent by 2020, East African countries will take more than stiff penalties for errant drivers: A complete overhaul of the transport system is now inevitable.

Although measures have been put in place to eliminate drink driving, for example, these have failed to eliminate the vice completely. Despite introducing the Alcoblow breathalyser to test alcohol levels at random on drivers on Kenya’s roads, it is obvious that police cannot be on all roads at the same time.

That points to the need for a culture change that will instil personal discipline as the best solution to the madness on our roads. Moreover, old and dilapidated vehicles that not only harm the environment but are also a danger to the public will need to be retired.

But even as drivers take most of the blame, the poor road infrastructure across the region is also a major contributor to road fatalities. Ongoing efforts to improve the road network must therefore acquire a renewed sense of urgency.

So, too, must the vigour with which we fight alcoholism. Not only has this vice brought misery to many families through road accidents, many men have been turned into “vegetables” and have become a drain on their families. This has placed many women in a pitiful situation as they seek to provide for families where the men have abdicated their responsibilities.

ROAD SAFETY EDUCATION

Needless to say, rampant corruption by traffic police officers has ensured that impunity reigns supreme, with drivers comfortable in the knowledge that they can virtually get away with murder. This means that removing the rotten eggs in our disciplined forces is not an option if the situation on the region’s roads is to improve.

Aggressive campaigns to educate all road users on safety measures and traffic rules cannot be postponed any more. Right from an elementary level, our education systems must integrate road safety education to children. A sense of morality and integrity must be instilled in our drivers if the worrying trend on our roads is to be reversed.

Government officials, the police, religious leaders, and non-governmental organisations need to put their heads together and find credible solutions that will stop the rising deaths on our roads, in the process ensuring the stability of families and reducing the burden on women and families.

By Anne Kiruku

Courtesy of East African News Agency, Arusha