ADVICE ON ROAD SAFETY SHOULD BE HEEDED

The recurring calls for road safety have for years seemed to fall on deaf ears while hundreds of thousands of people continue to lose their lives on the merciless roads.

The heart-wrenching accident on March 28 which claimed the life of one of Tanzania’s top economists and academicians, Professor Honest Prosper Ngowi, made this rallying call even more urgent and necessary.

Tanzania loses many lives simply because basic road safety rules are not adhered to. All this happens under the watchful eye of traffic police, but the incidents haven’t seemed to lessen one bit. So this begs the question; what road safety rules are our traffic police sensitizing on as they stop motorists on the road? We have seen many dilapidated cars still operating on the roads without as much as getting a red flag from the authorities who have been vested with the duty of safeguarding motorists and pedestrian safety on the road.

What needs to be done following these unabated but very much avoidable road accidents is to ensure that there are strict rules and repercussions for not following said rules. This should go beyond legal literature but be seen practically with authorities taking stern action against anyone found to have committed a traffic offence.

There needs to come a time when enough is enough. Fathers, sons, daughters, and wives die each day, leaving loved ones in tremendous grief and a void that can never be filled. The tenets of accountability seem to be long forgotten, leading to a complete disregard for rules and regulations. When this becomes the case, it is evident that there will be more chaotic scenes on the road as the authorities continue to issue political statements that create more noise than address the issue.

When it comes to road safety, there are many issues of concern: we have cargo trucks (abnormal wide load) that transport goods cross-border. Some of these trucks are not only not road-worthy with goods, but they also shouldn’t be on the road altogether. However, you will see many of them transporting heavy goods, making their way past urban settings before stretching onto busy countryside highways.

Such liberty to operate even when it is blatant that there is a problem with the vehicle is what has brought us to this stage where drivers are emboldened to break all the rules and go about their business.

More deliberate action

The gruesome road accidents that have become so common on upcountry highways should compel more deliberate actions between drivers of private vehicles, public service vehicles, and government cars. These are the common parties to such frequent accidents and so the onus is on them to think of ways to deter more bloodshed.

The situation might be grave, but it is not an entirely hopeless case. There is still a lot that can be done to ensure our roads are safe. We can do so much more to stop the needless loss of lives. Travelling from point A to point B shouldn’t be a death sentence. What is required is for the authorities to play their roles of ensuring safety on the roads is reinstated, and for motorists to be mindful of others when on the road, always keep an eye out.