The Zimbabwe Passenger Association (PAZ) has bemoaned the
reduced police presence on the roads, saying the vacuum has resulted in an
upsurge in unlicensed drivers that contribute to the high rate of accidents.
Traffic police disappeared from the roads during the
military takeover of government institutions that resulted in former president
Robert Mugabe’s ouster in November last year.
In recent months, the police have been slowly returning to
man roadblocks, but their visibility remains very low resulting in serious
traffic jams in cities such as Harare.
PAZ president Tafadzwa Goliati said although the removal of
roadblocks was a welcome development as they had become synonymous with
corruption, the continued lack of police visibility was a cause for concern.
“It is really a challenge, as passengers we are living in
danger,” he said.
“At least every 15 minutes, we are recording a traffic
accident because of many problems that include vehicles that should not be on
the roads, unlicensed drivers and bad driving, among other vices.
“This has largely been caused by the absence of police
officers on our roads.”
Goliati said commuters were now at the mercy of kombi crews
that often abused them because there were no police officers to protect them.
“Every corner is now a terminus and we have vehicles that
are not roadworthy,” he said.
“These vehicles are getting involved in accidents and we as
passengers are left exposed.
“Whenever there is an accident, passengers have no
mechanism to seek redress as these operators do not have paper work for
accountability.
“We have public service vehicles that do not have insurance
cover and no one is monitoring that.”
Greater Harare
Transport Association secretary-general Ngoni Katsvairo said a reformed police
force should return to the streets to monitor public service vehicle.
“The police force should come back, but must be reformed.
We want law officers who are professional and know what is expected of them,”
he said.
“We want a police force that abides by the law, that is
corruption-free and very respectful at the same time, while firm in policing.”
The Zimbabwe Republic Police was sidelined during the
military takeover as its commanders were believed to be sympathetic to Mugabe.
Standard
0 comments:
Post a Comment