The Sierra Leone Roads Transport Authority (SLRTA) on Friday 11th October 2013 conducted a comprehensive sensitization with Members of Parliament on road safety. The ceremony was held in the Parliamentary Committee Room with the theme; Our Collective Responsibility in Preventing Road Traffic Crashes - Together We Can Save Lives.
In his opening statement, Majority Leader of Parliament, Hon. Sheku B. B. Dumbuya said the engagement with SLRTA on road safety was very important and timely. He said as a parliament, they were very concerned of the lives of road users especially on road safety.
Hon. Dumbuya went on that it was necessary for parliamentarians to learn about road safety as they are all road users and are also prone to road accidents.According to him, most people think they know everything about road safety but little did they know that they lack the required knowledge to make them avoid road accidents.
He expressed hope that the interaction with SLRTA will yield good dividend and will further make honorable Members of Parliament gain wealth of experience that would minimize their involvement in road accidents and other related matters of road safety.
The Majority Leader used the forum to appeal to his colleagues to stay focus as the explanation unfolds so as to help them benefit from the interaction.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Transport and Aviation, Hon. Babatunde Lewally assured SLTRA that after the sensitization program, they as Members of Parliament will actively join the Authority to propagate road safety messages across the country.
He encouraged the SLRTA to work with Members of Parliament so as to ensure that the message of road safety reaches all corners of the country.
Executive Director of SLRTA, Sarah Bendu said road traffic accidents were on the increased and needed urgent attention from stakeholders.
She said research conducted by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that more than 3000 people died in road accidents each day, noting that this is approximating 1.3 million people dying each year with 50 million people injured annually.
Madam Bendu went on that 90% of road traffic deaths occurred in low and middle income countries like Sierra Leone, adding that recent survey conducted in the country revealed that there were about 2,204 road accident cases reported in 2012.
She said the loss of lives in each road accident would not only be seen as an economic loss but also a devastating emotional loss which a government cannot afford to record and has no room for.
The Executive Director maintained that road accidents can be predicted and prevented if only stakeholders and road users can come together and embrace the campaign on road safety.
She informed the Members of Parliament that the SLRTA has developed strategies and policies aimed to address the issues of road accidents and further promote road safety in its entirety. She added that road safety management, safer roads and mobility, safer vehicles, safer road users and post crash response were among some of the policies and strategies put in place by the Authority to promote road safety.
She pointed out that MPs will enhance a big change among the general public if they take the lead in road safety campaign, whilst pleading for them to support SLRTA in all aspects that would ensure road safety in Sierra Leone.
Minister of Transport and Aviation, Mr. Leonard Balogun Koroma said road safety problems in Sierra Leone borders on various issues starting with the increase in the number of vehicles plying the country’s roads.
He revealed further that the road infrastructure in Sierra Leone especially the urban areas cannot keep with the huge number of vehicles plying them, whilst stating that his government has however put policies and strategies in place to harness the challenges of road safety.
The minister went on that there has been a massive education of the public and road users about road safety, whilst pleading on Members of Parliament to join SLRTA to promote road safety in the country.
