All public service vehicle drivers have a moral and legal obligation to follow rules for passenger safety
No one else can help minibus drivers but themselves if they want to keep driving on our roads, They need to follow the rules and keep passenger safety a priority.
Viti Minibuses Association consultant, Maciu Volatabu claimed that many drivers were getting booked and could not pay their mounting fines. Their licences were suspended and they lost their only means of livelihood. Mr Volatabu asked Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum for help to get these drivers back on the road during the Financial Year 2022-2023 National Budget Consultations at the Sugar Cane Growers Council Hall in Lautoka on Tuesday.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said the drivers received a fine because they broke the law. He is right. No one is above the law. When we are caught breaching the law we will pay the consequences. In this case it’s fines. We cannot escape them.
Some travellers prefer to go by bus than a minibus because of a perception that it is safer. They are wary of the conduct of some minibus drivers who think they are behind the wheel of a racing car. Accidents involving minibus drivers have happened in the past because of overspeeding and reckless attitude.
It is understood that the drivers in question maximise their daily income by travelling between two points in the shortest possible time. The more runs they log in one day the more money they make. It accounts for overspeeding and other traffic infringements.
It is a dangerous practice because the risks of accidents are high. Fatigue and poor health are the products of long hours on the road.
When drivers are tired they put every motorist, passenger and pedestrian in danger. The safety of all road users is the responsibility of all drivers including minibus drivers.
They must follow the rules- there is no other way, The other way can be costly, traumatic and deadly. Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said: “Unfortunately in Fiji a lot of these things we have seen, people don’t adhere to the rules,” he said.
We need to change that mentality through training and counselling. Those who are trapped in it need to understand that unless they change they are a risk to society - a ticking time bomb.
Multiple offences have no doubt earned the offending drivers fines they can’t afford to pay back within the prescribed period. The consequence is they lose their licences.
A flexible and affordable repayment regime can be set up between the Land Transport Authority and the offenders. The suspension of licence should be the last resort. How can they pay their fines if they have stopped driving and not earning money?
If this can’t be resolved then drivers have to live the only thing way - follow the law or face the consequences.
delaibatiki@fijisun.com.fj