Starving in the midst of plenty

Nothing surprises me anymore after living in this country for so long. And why not? With graceful confidence, we have ensconced ourselves in filth. We prefer to futz around and brace ourselves, with faces of stone, at the yearly cholera onslaught, a disease that only serves as a reminder of how primitive our environmental sanitation is. The yearly ritual of floods is also a sordid reminder of how comprehensively we tackle things - at least those that matter most!

It seems a point of honour to concentrate so much on politics in this country. The foppery of a politician engages our minds more than the important issues of health.

Law enforcement

What cannot be contested is that laws are made to deter people from playing truant in society. Our natural inclination to do what is wrong all the time needs to be checked with laws. Therefore, it is absolutely pointless to make laws without the will power for its enforcement.

The notion that people in advanced countries are more law-abiding than those in developing countries needs to be treated with the disdain it deserves. The difference in the orderliness witnessed in advanced countries is because of the enforcement of the law. Without law enforcement, the free for all attitude is only a sterling reminder that we are only imperfect humans!

Andrew Mitchell, a Conservative MP and the government chief whip, had to resign his position because he used a derogatory word "pleb" on a policeman on duty. Responsible leadership at play for all to see. In Ghana, a politician can say anything and still keep his position, sometimes even promoted. Parliamentarians cannot be described as 'ignorant' no matter how ignorant their statements may be. Same law, different enforcement, depending on where you "belong".

Impunity of motorcyclists

It is this "same law, different enforcement" cliche that has hit a raw nerve of mine. On a cursory look, it may appear there is a different set of traffic rules for motorcyclists and drivers. The 'red means stop" is as incomprehensible as the gibberish tantrums of a baby to the motorcyclist, it seems. They meander dangerously in traffic, ever ready, like viragos, to scream abuses at anyone who dare question their methods. To these motorcyclists everything must stop for them to ply their trade, irrespective of the consequences. When all cars have obeyed the red lights of the traffic robot, trust the motorcyclist to speed through with impunity!

The accident centres and orthopaedic wards are filled with people with injuries traceable to a motorbike event. Unfortunately, it is not only these riders who get injured, pedestrians and drivers are also put at risk by the bravado of these riders.

It is not unusual for a car to stop at a zebra crossing only for a motorbike to speed through with little or no regard who may be crossing. Many pedestrians have been at the receiving end of the folly of these riders.

What really baffles me is the seeming tolerance of this dangerous habit by our law enforcement agents. A typical sight of a policeman doing nothing to a bike rider after he has jumped the red light will only be strange to the unconcerned. It is actually seen as normal for motorcyclists to meander through a sea of cars obeying a red traffic sign only to speed through the red light in full glare of a policeman.

With the "Okada" business booming, those who jump the traffic lights, who are at risk of being knocked down by a car, or hitting a pedestrian, do so without so much of a thought. They neither wear helmets nor offer one to their passengers. With our deliberate tolerance of this practice, people are actually growing bolder. They are overloading their motorbikes with more than the recommended numbers!

I really have no sympathies for any adult who loses his life or get maimed for life because he decided to jump on a motorbike without a helmet or to be over the recommended number. I have lost track of the number of times I have seen a policeman sitting on a motorbike, as a passenger with no helmet on. I refuse to be added to those who waste emotions on these people when they get involved in road traffic accidents.

Protection of our children

What really deserves my emotions is the emerging trend of people sending schoolchildren to school on a motorcycle, with no helmets. Sometimes I see three schoolchildren crammed into the small space in front of the rider. Needless loss of lives, not to mention the drain on the nation when we lose these children to road traffic accidents.

It is in this light that I wonder why the police, as an institution, is poor, with so much lawlessness exhibited. Again, the reason why these sights are extinct in the advanced world is not because the people there are more insightful but punitive measures, calculated to make an indelible mark on their minds, are the order of the day. I have no shred of doubt that the same person riding without a helmet, jumping red lights freely and putting children at risk by cramming them on a motorbike here will never even give it a thought, much more carry it through, in the advanced world. Because the law works.

The police should enforce strict traffic rules for all, including the motorcyclist. If they decide not to obey, their memories need jolting with hefty fines. Those transporting schoolchildren on overloaded motorcycles with no helmets need their licences revoked in addition to heavy fines. This, I believe, will not only put a stop to this bad practice but will serve as an income generating avenue for the police. We must not continue to starve of revenue in the midst of this plenty indiscipline. Hope someone is reading.


The writer is a member of Paediatric Society of Ghana.

Writer’ E-mail: astom2@yahoo.com