Minister of Transport, Dr Bonginkosi Nzimande addressing law enforcement officers at the launch of the Easter Road Safety launch, Heidelberg, Ekurhuleni
Traffic Chiefs;
Traffic Law Enforcement Officers;
Ladies and gentlemen
Easter weekend is upon us.
As we all know, it is characterised by voluminous scheduled travel for leisure and attendance of religious pilgrimages which have the capacity to increase road carnages.
As Law Enforcement Officer, you are once more called upon to ensure that you decrease the calamity which is caused by death and injuries on our roads. It is periods like these, where you remain the hope of our nation.
Your primary objective as traffic law enforcers is to save lives, prevent injuries and accidents and facilitate the free flow of traffic.
It is a universally accepted fact that noticeable patrol of freeways, streets and public places by uniformed officers in clearly marked vehicles is the best means available for the prevention of road traffic violations.
Therefore, I would like to make a clarion call that you must go back to basics and direct all our law enforcement efforts to high risk violations, occurring at certain times and places that lead to an increased number of crashes.
The 2017 Easter Road Traffic Report indicates that many of the people who died on our roads in this period were victims of hit and run, jaywalking or motorists who were driving at speeds that were too high for circumstances.
The 2017 preliminary report shows a new pattern that crashes shifted from the identified historical hotspots into new routes and build-up areas on times that previously did not have a high number of crashes.
Very glaringly most crashes and fatalities happened in residential areas and remote areas and very interestingly from 23h00 mid night until 05h00 in the morning. This new phenomenon requires of all the law enforcement fraternity nationally, provincially and locally to spread wings jointly informed by uniform working norms and standards.
Equally important, this clearly shows that the common practice of hiding officers or vehicles to apprehend traffic offenders is counter-productive and antagonises citizens that are normally law-abiding. The challenging situation we are faced with calls upon us to make a fundamental shift and start doing differently going forward.
That radical shift will be achieved by ensuring that traffic officers come out of the bushes and crack down on drunken driving as a leading contributor to traffic violations that lead to unnecessary crashes and fatalities.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the nation is looking upon you to assist the government to realise the commitment we made to reduce road fatalities.
You have been provided with the necessary skills and expertise to make a difference in the lives of our community, do not disappoint them.
We fully understand that the environment you are working under is full of temptations and dangers. There are sharks out there waiting to tempt you into corruption.
I call upon you to resist the temptation to take bribes and to implement the law without fear, favour or prejudice.
Always remember that the embarrassment of being caught in corruption will not be borne by you alone. This embarrassment will extend to you families, children and the entire government.
We have also noted with deep concern the increasing number of unwarranted attacks on our traffic law enforcement officers.
Every week there are reports of a traffic officer who is run over by some rogue who refuses to obey the rules of the road. Our courts will deal harshly with the people who attack you when doing your work. An attack on law enforcement officers is an attack on the State.
You are also human and deserve respect and protection when doing your work.
The government is prepared to continue to invest in improving your skills and development. We now have introduced a new qualification which will is equivalent to a National Diploma or National Qualification Framework level 6.
We want you to be skilled in all competences of traffic law enforcement and we will be re-organizing our training colleges to offer specialized training to equip you.
I will you well in executing you work this Easter and beyond
I Thank You
