THERE'S A HOLE IN THE ROAD NEAR EAST END POLICE STATION
The other day we described the SLRA as both incompetent and insensitive. Incompetent because, there's no doubt in the minds of Sierra Leoneans that the SLRA is just not able to even properly supervise their own contractors. We put forward as evidence, the shambolic state of many of our road projects. We are talking about township roads that were designed to change the face of our district headquarters and other constructions in Freetown. Why some people in the SLRA are still holding on to their offices, collecting huge cash is anybody's guess. They are simply not delivering the goods.
Insensitive because we know of at least three people who've fallen into Freetown's open drainage system resulting in serious injuries, requiring them to pay huge monies as medical bills. Some are now carrying permanent disabilities. These people cannot even dream about taking SLRA to court or asking them for compensation because it will be a waste of time and energy. If construction companies in some countries behaved the way those being supervised by the SLRA are behaving in Sierra Leone, they would be closed down by lawsuit after lawsuit.
How can the SLRA allow that mining pit at the East End police station area to exist for so long? We have heard many complaints on radio programs about the danger that hole represents for people and cars in that packed area of Freetown but nobody at SLRA is acting. They have closed their ears to the cry of the public. The same SLRA would be all over the place, the day De Pa personally expresses concern about it. That's what they are waiting for. We hope De Pa reads this. Now, we've started seeing potholes on the highway leading to Bo. We recently saw large ones just after Taiama Junction. Like the former works minister, the SLRA is not able to deliver De Pa's programme in the infrastructure area of the Agenda for Prosperity. Some people in that place must go the way of Petito.
DID 400 PEOPLE DIE IN ROAD ACCIDENTS IN SIERRA LEONE LAST YEAR?
We heard a shocking statistic on radio yesterday morning about Sierra Leoneans dying on our roads in their hundreds. The radio panel said 400 died in 2014. Did we hear that correctly? OK. On the same panel was the police traffic coordinator who did not quarrel with that figure but gave his own figures going back to 2011. It showed yearly increases over a three year period.
You know, even one death on our roads is unacceptable. Road accidents are a fact of life but that's doesn't mean we shouldn't raise questions about 247 or 400 deaths. The panel on Culture Radio tried to answer the important questions of why so many people were dying on our roads and what we must do urgently to drastically reduce the figures. Here's our humble contribution to that debate:
1. There are many vehicles in this country that are simply not roadworthy. Some are shipped here in very bad condition but we still allow them on the roads. Get them off the roads now.
2. Some of our drivers, particularly commercial vehicle drivers are not qualified and do not have the right attitude. Mix that up with the fact that road signs are completely absent in many areas, and then you have a fertile ground for accidents.
3. We hardly see police highway patrols enforcing speed limits on highways. They have checkpoints, yes. All drivers slow down when they approach checkpoints. That doesn't help much
4.When accidents happen, as they sure would, damage could be minimised if vehicle owner do not put metal benches in their mini vans just to pack in more people. The mini vans arrive in Freetown with original seats. Why change them?
5. SLRA has to prepare the road a bit more with speed traps and Zebra crossings prominently marked out. It's that serious.
SO WHERE ARE WE NOW WITH THE PASSPORT WAHALA?
This passport thing is becoming a little complicated. We are talking about the new price that the Internal Affairs Ministry and the Immigration office have stipulated. It's almost as if they targeted the minimum wage - FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND LEONES. Just when the ministry thought that had laid the matter to rest at a news conference, came news that five civil society organisations have further turned on the heat by calling on the ACC to investigate the ministry over how they handled the procurement process. Well that's another story we should be interested in.
At the ministry's news conference, we were compared to other countries in the sub-region, in terms of the cost of passports. There's no problem with that. What many in Sierra Leone are really saying is that FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND Leones for a passport is too much. The people believe that the government should drastically reduce that price so that we can afford our passports. We thank those civil society organisations and journalists who are leading the campaign on our behalf.
Please, passports are more about national identity than raising money for the government. We can raise money from many other sources and even control expenditure in other areas to put more money in the hands of government to provide social services.
Maybe the Internal Affairs ought to have engaged us early in the process of trying to introduce the new passports so that by this time, the focus would be on the document and not the cost. Anyway, a ONE HUNDRED PERCENT increase should be fine. Anything beyond that is real pain in the pocket.
SAME PODA-PODA BUT DIFFERENT FARES PER HEAD
Why are poda-poda drivers behaving like their vehicles have suddenly become planes where there are first class cabins occupied by people who are strong in the pocket and the economy areas for small people? We have checked this many times - poda-poda drivers charge TWO THOUSAND LEONES for front seats, the seat beside the driver while those in the other seats pay half that price. Why is that case please? Do they offer them food and drinks?
AaaaaayyyyySalone! We are living in a country where people take chances with the wrong thing and after some time they get away with it. This is naked exploitation, it must stop.
Yes, the front seats are the only ones not replaced with metal seats but why would anybody pay that extra money just to make themselves the first casualties when recklessness sets in. The poda-poda drivers would also give that part of the vehicle away when one of the many accident occur. Let's leave that front seat free if they insist on charging TWO THOUSAND LEONES.
We understand the reason why people would do anything to catch the next vehicle. Transportation is a big wahala in Sierra Leone. We don't know what difference those one hundred buses from Logus Koroma would make when they finally land.
(C) Politico 11/06/15
