By Binta Jaiteh
The National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense and Security on Wednesday engaged the Deputy Inspector General of Police, the National Road Authority(NRA), the General Transport Union, and the Mobile Police on the rampant road accidents and solutions.
The committee discussed with the different stakeholders ways to address the rampant road accidents in the country.
Speaking during the discussion, the Chairperson of the committee, Seedy Njie, said accidents are attributed to reckless driving, over-speeding, and others.
“The question is on how drivers are given licenses. Sometimes, licenses are issued to minors or unqualified drivers. We are alarmed and concerned about road accidents, which prompted us to invite the stakeholders to discuss the matter as urgency,” he underlined.
According to him, the committee proposes a national speed limit enforcement through the deployment of speed cameras, adding that this will curb reckless driving and enforce compliance with established speed regulations.
Deputy speaker Njie pointed out that the committee decided that henceforth, the police should embark on massive road and vehicle checks to ensure compliance with traffic laws and regulations.
“We feel that it is our responsibility to engage all road users and offer proper solutions to address the situation. This proactive approach will help and identify this issue of underage driving,” he postulated.
He suggested that street cameras should be installed and more traffic officers deployed.
The President of the General Transport Union, Omar Ceesay, stated that road safety is everyone’s business. He added that most of the time, people point fingers at the drivers despite the accident not being their fault.
The Commissioner of Mobile Traffic, Comm. Lamin King Colley, said the only way to combat road accidents is through speed bumps.
He explained that speed bumps are needed to avert road accidents because they are important.
The Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Transport, Works and Infrastructure, Ebrima Colley, stated that roads are not constructed to cause accidents but to make the movement of people easier.
He told the committee that the Ministry has a unit responsible for sensitization of the community on how to comply with road regulations, adding that new patrol motorbikes will be purchased for the police.
The Managing Director of NRA, Mr. Momodou Senghore, asserted that education and awareness will help the NRA a lot in terms of road safety as most of the time, people don’t know how to use the roads.
He explained that the Bertil Harding Highway is a new piece of infrastructure and the citizens should be educated on how to use the road “because ever in the country have we seen 3 by 3 road with flyovers as well as a roundabout.
“I believe once they are educated, a lot will be changed,” MD Senghore said.
