Chief Executive of the National Road Safety Authority, Mrs. May Obiri Yeboah says the authority is relying on traditional rulers or road safety champions to influence change in behaviors and attitudes among all categories of road users.
She said Ya-na Abukari, the overload of the Dagbon state, who had been designated as a road safety champion, is showing leadership in that regard, hence others identifiable leaders will be brought on board as part of the strategy to help minimize fatalities and injuries on the road.
Ghana has been hit with several accidents, which has claimed lives; the latest being the Kintampo accident which claimed about 30 lives during a head on collision involving a Yutong and a Sprinter bus.
Largely, human factors have played a part during such crashes, but systemic failures in younger democracies including Ghana, especially during electioneering periods where traffic offenders easily get away with their actions, is a factor that has to be seriously addressed.
Often some political, religious as well as traditional leaders interfere with the cause of justice which makes enforcement of road safety breaches very challenging, however, Mrs. Obiri Yeboah who was speaking to Diamond News in an exclusive interview, stated that things are going to be different this time around especially with the determination of the President.
According figures from the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD), 2,284 lives were lost in road crashes in 2019.
The National Road Safety Authority’s new mandate make provision for the training of drivers unions to ensure that contents are up to standards before drivers are allowed to hit the road.
Also stakeholders including the police, the insurance companies among others can be sanctioned by the NRSA, if their standard procedures are not followed.
Among others, road inspectors would be dispatched by the authority to check safety on the road and at bus terminals. The authority will also regulate commercial transport operations just as it is done in aviation and maritime sectors.
Source: Nelson Adanuti Nyadror | www.diamondfmonline.com | Ghana
