The Good Governance Monitoring Alert (GGMA), an Enugu-based group, has waded into the face-off between bus drivers in the state and officials of the State Ministry of Transport.
The group in a press statement Monay, signed by its State Coordinator, Hon. Augustine Nweke, urged the bus operators and other resident of the state to partner with the traffic officials of the transport ministry towards having an organised state.
The organisation said its call was not unconnected with “the recent protest by Bus Transport Operators and unwarranted criticism of the ministry of transport over the activities of traffic control officers in Enugu State.
“We believe that the creation of such government department was needed in such circumstance to avert lack of decorum and orderliness in vehicle traffic in the state.”
Nweke appealed to resident to imbibe the virtue of accepting good policies of government aimed at achieving the collective aspiration of the people.
He stressed that the need for the traffic control agency could not be over-emphasized, stressing that “the fact that the police and other security agencies are already overburdened with maintenance of law and order, the need to create a complimentary body to assist in ensuring effective control in a fast-growing city like Enugu arose, hence the MOT traffic control officers.
“It is indeed the primary function of state to monitor and check vehicle with a view to ensuring compliance to the use of valid vehicle documents and license to forestall road mishaps and other associated incidents.
“The need to check dilapidated vehicles, non use of driver’s license, expired vehicle documents, underage drivers, among others, are of precautionary essence as well as to save life and generate revenue for government to deliver dividends of democracy to the people and create employment.”
The group equally expressed worry over what it called observed “level of recklessness and impunity being exhibited by drivers, especially the commercial transporters, who do not obey traffic rule and regulations except they are coerced.
“We also notice with dismay that some unreasonable drivers in Enugu had on many occasions caused mishap and various traffic problems as a result of not adhering to rules to make stoppages or park at designated places.
“Our observation is that the government of Enugu State led by His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is a listening government and therefore responds promptly upon the demands of the citizens.”
“This is why they have taken several steps to reform the MOT traffic officers through training and retraining, discipline, through effective monitoring and supervision as well as through legislation.
“The arduous commitment of government was buttressed through several immediate withdrawal of the body each time there were public outcry of complaints of intimidation and exploitation by the body.
“As a body committed to playing the role ombudsman of democracy, we hereby urge the Enugu people to accept this traffic control officers as the society cannot be devoid of arbitrariness and impunity if laws are made without effective implementation,” Nweke further stated.