Road accidents, fatalities declined significantly during festive season

By: Hendrina Kanyolo

The Minister of Works and Transport, John Mutorwa, stated that road accidents have declined by 15 percent, while fatalities decreased by 45 percent compared to the previous festive season.

Mutorwa said that for the first time, the country has achieved a significant reduction in the road safety history. Mutorwa made these remarks during the launch of the 2022/23 festive road safety campaign report.

According to the minister, a total of 324 road crashes were recorded in the 2022/23 period, compared to 384 during the previous festive season.

“In relation to injuries, 633 were recorded as compared to 746, during the previous 2021/22 festive season. As far as fatalities are concerned, 54 fatalities were recorded in the just ended festive season compared to or against 98 fatalities during the previous festive season,” noted Mutorwa.

Despite the decline in road fatalities, 960 drivers were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol during the festive season.

According to Namibian Police Deputy Inspector General for Operations, Major General Elias Mutota, about 26 332 summons were issued with a value of over N$ 23 million.

Mutota added that it is worrisome that road users are influenced by the presence of law enforcement officials and need to be regulated and policed all the time in-order for them to adhere to traffic laws.

“Traffic surveillance and law enforcement activities can have a significant impact on the compliance from road users in terms of the traffic rules and regulations. Considering the statistics of the festive season campaign report, it seems that the behaviour of road users is influenced by the presence of traffic law enforcement officers and officials on our roads. However, this is a worrisome situation, to note that the road users need to be regulated and policed at all times,” said Mutota.