Motorists need time to pay fines
EDITOR — I have no problem with fines going up. Punishment is meant to be correctional and I don’t think light penalties will serve any purpose.
What I am against is the idea of spot fines as if everyone in this country operates a bank.
If Government is facing financial challenges where do they think we can get money for spot fines?
For example, I can leave my home with all lights working, but because the car will be working on the road, it takes a switched-on headlight to blow off, than the one that is off.
So, if that bulb happens not to work when I get to the roadblock, a ticket would be much better than a spot fine.
Our MPs in Parliament, both Zanu-PF and the MDC-T, should work together to rectify some of these things than to heckle each other all the time, wasting our time.
Parliament time is our time as the electorate and surely it must be used productively.
In addition, I do not have a problem with the fines, they are actually lower compared to other countries.
In some countries, the fine for not having a seat belt on is $100 per passenger, so the $5 or $10 in Zimbabwe is close to nothing.
What I have problems with in the Zimbabwean system are two things:
1 Spot fines — Let’s say my rear number plate light is not working, do I need to then pay the $20 immediately or I can be given time to pay the fine. In other countries, you are given 15 days to pay the fine, then if you don’t pay in 15 days, there will be an additional penalty per day of delay.
2 Determining whether you have committed an offence: Most of the traffic light intersections in Zimbabwe, for example, don’t have countdown timers, so you have no idea when the signal is about to change.
Quite frequently, I would approach a green light and then it turns amber just as I would be entering the intersection, and out jumps a police officer and slaps me with a $20 fine, which I’m supposed to pay “immediately”.
These are the real issues in my view. I have always tried my best to be a law-abiding citizen, but I have been treated like a car thief for something as minor as a third plate with a corner that is slightly out of place. Please! Chikamba Styles, Harare.