Dear Editor,
I have read that the Commission appointed by President David Granger to inquire into the deadly Friendship, East Bank Demerara accident that killed five people on October 15 has completed its work. Had I been able to sit with the Commission, I would have had the following questions and suggestions on behalf of my first cousin Herbert Josiah, who was the son of my Aunt Enid, my mother’s sister:
1. Was the driver of the police vehicle licensed to drive?
2. What was his driving record?
3. At the time of the accident, what was his state of mind? Was he sober?
It is my opinion that signs that can also be read at night should be placed at the spot where Herbert Josiah, his wife and three other people lost their lives, and all other such fatal accident spots all over Guyana.
If it is not happening, insurance companies should consider rewarding drivers with clean annual records. Further, insurance companies and other agencies might also think about defensive driving classes. Participants should be able to view pictures and videos of road horrors in Guyana at those classes. The most important aspect of defensive driving, however, should be to make all participants aware that other people use the roads. With that in mind, a driver must always be conscious that another might be driving recklessly.
The current government and future governments should consider introducing drivers’ education in schools for at least 1 period per week. This might help produce hundreds of good future drivers.
I acknowledge that even the most careful drivers might not be able to prevent some accidents, but defensive driving and a school programme could lessen insensitive driving, serious injuries and deaths.
Yours faithfully,
Roy Brummell
