by
Hon S Moodley MPL
Hon Speaker,
The holiday season is filled with happiness and celebration, but it can also be a time of danger for road users.
It seems everyone is in a hurry trying to wrap up their shopping and enjoy their festive celebrations. But as you’re dashing around town, it’s important to keep road safety on top of your mind, as the streets are busier and drivers are distracted by their holiday to do lists.
As the IFP we welcome any initiative aimed at reducing crime and road accidents on our roads.
We must do our best to ensure that motorists who ignore the call to take road safety seriously are dealt with accordingly. As we approach the Festive Season, our traffic officers must be visible on the provinces roads to ensure the safety of all road users. The department of transport must implement harsher measures to deter drunken and reckless driving which is the major cause of road accidents.
The MEC must present a detailed plan on how he intends to deal with shopping mall robberies during this festive season after thirteen heavily armed men smashed their way into the Davenport Square shopping centre recently, ransacking four shops in a matter of minutes.
Using 10-pound hammers, they smashed through the glass doors at two cell phone shops, a make-up and cosmetics store and a restaurant. We need to protect shoppers from these ruthless criminals who are terrorising businesses and pick pocketing shoppers.
South Africans must enjoy the festival season and refrain from breaking the law during the festive season, to avoid loss of lives and ensure a crime-free festive season. To those intending to enjoy their festive season elsewhere, they must ensure that their houses are safe. Police will always be there to protect them, and their property but it is paramount that they also take initial measures and avoid such occurrences.
We call on the KZN MEC of Transport to implement strategies that will place emphasis on personal responsibility and the focus of the education component must have personal responsibility at its core. His priority must be to continue to find ways to encourage safer behaviour so that we can reduce death and injury on our roads.
To support this objective, he must enforce laws to improve road safety. If drivers know that they will be sanctioned in a harsher manner, they will ensure that they do not violate traffic rules. Let’s ensure that this festive season is safe and happy one for everyone on our province.
Lastly, coupled with the recent persistent rains, road conditions require motorists to exercise patience and stay focused on the road. Persistent rains result in slippery and damaged roads, leading to difficulties in driving, therefore, those entrusted with the critical responsibility of driving cannot afford to take their eyes off the road.
I thank you,