Protocol observed
Last Thursday, friends and families of those about whom we are gathered here today thought nothing of such an occasion as this one. Even on Friday morning families and friends thought of times to come, a future, during which they would gather again and enjoy one another’s company.
Unfortunately, as fate would have it, this was not to happen. Such is the nature of accidents, unpredictable and painful. The numbers of HIV and AIDS related deaths versus those of road accidents may be too close, but with HIV and AIDS people get to prepare and also have a chance to say goodbye to their loved ones.
With road accidents, the families see the person leave in the morning and expect to see them return in the evening but they never do. Another thing is that breadwinners die on our roads and we are thus faced with too many child headed households. It is therefore that as government we believe that reckless drivers contribute directly to increased poverty in the country. Our innocent people are leaving their families in poverty in a country that is working hard to remove the adverse effects of the apartheid system on the majority of its citizens.
The past weekend saw us losing more than 15 people in various road crashes in the province. Most of them were working and therefore had people depending on them for food and other needs. What happened? According to preliminary reports, on the morning of Friday 28 August 2009 at about 05h15 on the N2 between Empangeni and Mtubatuba approximately one kilometre north of the R102 intersection, a mini bus taxi collided head on into a truck killing seven people instantly.
The minibus was travelling north bound direction Empangeni to Nseleni and the truck was from Nelspruit on route to Durban. There was also another car that collided with the spare wheel which was thrown out of the mini bus. The car was from Richards Bay to Empangeni. All three vehicles were inspected by the officers on the scene and found to be in a roadworthy condition. No alcohol was found in all vehicles. The case is still being investigated by South African Police Service (SAPS) to establish the cause of the accident.
Of course, we can have reports on what may actually have contributed to this terrible event. Nonetheless, the writing is on the wall. We all know that most accidents are caused by human error. I am sure that what happened in this area last Friday was something preventable. The question posed at all of us therefore is whether or not we wish to prevent this carnage from ravaging us further. Our numerous campaigns must be exactly designed to help prevent these kinds of things from recurring.
We would like to pass condolences to the families of the following:
Name: Lucky Gumede
Area: Nseleni
Age: 26
Employment: Security Officer
Name: Vusi Mkhwanazi
Area: Mtubatuba
Age: 30
Employment: Security Officer
Name: Muzikayifani Patrick Zulu
Area: Nongoma
Age: 45
Employment: Security Officer
Name: Sakhile Mngomezulu
Area: Ngwavuma
Age: 27
Employment: Taxi Driver
Name: Dumisani Biyela
Area: Mevamhlophe
Age: 43
Employment: Taxi Driver
Name: Siyabonga Mngomezulu
Area: Mtubatuba
Age: 24
Employment: Contract Worker
Indeed, there is no amount of words sufficient enough to comfort the families during these difficult moments. What is left for us is to ensure that together we can make a difference on our roads. As drivers we need to be responsible especially when in charge of other human lives. As passengers we need to be very aware of safe and legal travel, and not make ourselves vulnerable to abuse.
Let us all be witnesses added to the arsenal of the enforcement agencies. If we could say never again to apartheid, we can again come together in this dark hour and put an end to butchery on our roads.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Transport, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
3 September 2009
Source: Department of Transport, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government (http://www.kzntransport.gov.za/)
