Dear Editor,
The madness on our roads continues. Traffic lights, road signs, etc, in the minds of many drivers, are mere decorations which have no real meaning. Only harsh punishment will have an impact. Unfortunately for Guyana, leaders of some interest groups will scream foul when the police get tough. But the law is the law, and those same people who scream foul will obey all the laws of the USA or Canada. What irony!
It is my considered opinion that traffic laws are broken by drivers because of attitudes born of the existing tolerance for indecency and indiscipline. I cite the absence of a dress code for minibus and taxi drivers whose job it is to transport members of the public. This industry must operate within a certain framework. Imagine a minibus or taxi driver with armless vest, head tied up with a kerchief, cigarette in mouth transporting people! Where else but in Guyana will you find that state of affairs? The way we dress influences the way we behave; we have to live the way we look.
Guyana was once a nation with standards and decorum. We have radically changed that outlook because we have embraced the negative culture prevalent in some Caribbean territories which are speedily spiralling downwards. Is Guyana at that point of no return? I do not think so.
I know the Minister of Home Affairs; I know the Commissioner of Police; I know the Traffic Chief and most of his well-intentioned officers. These good people must pull the reins on this continuing lawlessness on the road, regardless of protests from the law-breakers.
People engaged in public transport cannot decide that their outlandish attire, attitudes and behaviour are okay. They are not okay. The image and reputation of our country is at stake. The lives of persons using the road are at stake. I have listened to representations by leaders of the various minibus associations. They impress me as objective and law-abiding persons. But I fail to understand the general reluctance in relation to wanting an improvement in the dress and conduct of their members and others similarly engaged.
Should we therefore resolve to immediately implement: a) a dress code for the drivers of minibuses and taxis; removing all music-enhancing equipment for minibuses and taxis; c) placing minibus and taxi drivers/owners within the income tax net; d) intensifying the zero-tolerance policy in relation to traffic breaches; e) Making known to the police hierarchy minibuses/taxis owned by policemen/ women or their relatives and ensuring they enjoy no special privileges; f) using police decoys/unmarked vehicles in catching defaulters more often;
g) stopping private cars being used as taxis?
I guarantee that a change in attitude on the road will be evident within three months of implementation of the above.
But do we have the will?
Yours faithfully,
Taajnauth Jadunauth
