Africa-Press – Mozambique. The president of the Mozambican Federation of Road Transport Associations FEMATRO on Monday called for “severe punishment” against drivers in order to stop more fatalities in road accidents in the country.
“There needs to be severe accountability for the authors of these accidents,” Castigo Nhamane said, reacting to the accident that led to the death of 17 people on Saturday in Manhiça district, where four months ago 32 people had already died in another accident, both involving public transport.
The accident occurred on Saturday in the 3 de Fevereiro locality, when a jeep collided head-on with a light vehicle of public transport travelling from Maputo to Xai-Xai, the capital of Gaza province.
“If we find that the bus driver was at fault, he has to be held responsible in an exemplary way”, said Castigo Nhamane, who criticises the existence of several accidents that ended in fatalities without holding the offending drivers responsible.
“There are several cases of drivers who end up unpunished, even with proof that they were at fault in the accidents, mainly drivers who transport passengers. What happens is that these same people then go back to work in another vehicle. This is impunity”, said Castigo Nhamane.
He also criticised the position of the Maputo province authorities, saying that “it took more deaths for measures to be taken”, including strengthening enforcement and reviewing road signs.
“People have to die so that there is money to solve the road problems”.
The Maputo provincial government met on Sunday in an extraordinary meeting with several authorities and they announced a reinforcement of supervision along the national road 1 (EN1) in Manhiça district.
Other measures announced included the revision of road signs and speed limits, road works in some places and awareness campaigns for safe driving.
The district was the scene of the most serious road accident ever recorded in Mozambique, with 32 deaths, which occurred on July 3, involving two trucks and a bus that tried to overtake illegally on the EN1.
At the time two days of national mourning were declared and the national director of Transport and Road Safety and the director of the National Institute of Road Transport (INATRO) were dismissed.
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