The role of passengers in ensuring accident-free Xmas

Road safety and the welfare of travellers is one issue of prime importance to the Daily Graphic as the Christmas festive season approaches.

This is because a good number of people travel during this time and their safety must not in any way be jeopardised.

Yesterday, the Daily Graphic expressed some thoughts on the role of drivers, especially commercial drivers, in ensuring an accident-free Christmas, but we believe that that quest should involve a comprehensive role by all stakeholders.

In that regard, passengers and other road users, who are often the victims of the road accidents, also have roles to play in averting accidents during the yuletide.

Passengers must not, in the bid to get to their destinations on time, exert pressure on drivers to speed unnecessarily. They must know that wherever they are going, they need to get there alive.

Therefore, it is better to arrive at their destinations late rather than to make drivers rush and get involved in accidents in which case they would never get to their destinations but rather cause pain to their loved ones. They must always bear in mind the dictum, “Better be late than the late passenger”.

Thus, passengers must be resolute in protesting any negative action on the part of drivers. They should refuse to board a vehicle when they suspect that the driver has taken in alcohol.

Also, they should all protest when a driver is speeding and call him to order. Quite often, only one person would do so while the others remain quiet, thereby giving the driver the opportunity to accuse that concerned person of being “too know”.

That should not be the norm during this year’s Yuletide. The strong voice of all aboard a vehicle, protesting the wrongful acts of a driver and his mate, would go a long way to prevent mayhem.

Some drivers have shown that they are stubborn; they do not listen to the pleas of passengers but rather continue  their ‘killer missions’.

When that happens, passengers, for their own safety, should alight from the vehicle at the nearest police checkpoint and report the conduct of the driver to the policemen.

Citizens’ action works through collective voices and it behoves all to ensure that their voices are part of decisions that affect their lives.

It would be better if we take proactive steps to prevent accidents, rather than apportion blame when the unfortunate happens.

Ensuring an accident-free Christmas cannot be the preserve or responsibility of any single entity. It is a collective responsibility and passengers must play their role to ensure that it succeeds.

Ghana needs all its people alive to build a prosperous nation.