A TOP government official has blamed unlicensed drivers for causing a spike in road accidents.
By Nhau Mangirazi
Speaking at the official launch of the Accident Vehicle Fund consultative meeting in Karoi last week, Transport and Infrastructural Development director, Allowance Sango, said motorists driving public service vehicles were either unlicensed or underage, hence the increase in road accidents.
“We are facing challenges because we have too many ghost drivers in our roads. They do not have the required documents including driver’s licenses. Most of the drivers driving public transport are less than 25 years old without a minimum of five years’ experience to drive public transport. If you ask for a licence, they produce a blue one that is fake, another blue car registration book, a blue identity card is fake,” he said.
“What this reveals is that we have fake drivers on our roads and these are ghosts. The only proper document soon after afforded a chance to travel is a death certificate that awaits him after accident. As passengers, we fall into the trap of ghost drivers fuelling accidents on our roads.’’
Sango added that according to a 2016 survery produced by the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration, 90% of imported cars are not officially registered with the Central Vehicle Registry, turning the country’s roads into a jungle.
“There is need to embark on Command Vehicle Accident Fund to cater for those affected by accidents so that they can be compensated to meet funeral and medical expenses,” Sango said.
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Speaking at the same event, Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe representative, Clifford Gobo, said neighbouring countries such as Botswana, Namibia and South Africa have already established a similar road accident fund.
“We must be wary of how the funds will be managed since it will be public funds,” Gobo said.
