Latest update April 18th, 2025 8:12 AM
Relatives of accident victims renew call for stiffer penalties
Guyana yesterday remembered those who have died as a result of road accidents over the years, when scores participated in the annual awareness walk for road safety as the world celebrated World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.
Participants as they assembled for the awareness activity.
The event was spearheaded by the Guyana National Road Safety Council in partnership with the Ministry of Home Affairs along with Members of the Guyana Police Force Traffic Department. In addition, the representatives of Mothers in Black, Guyana Trinidad Mutual (GTM) Insurance Company along with volunteers from both private sector and governmental organizations were also a part.
Yesterday’s event was only one among many other planned events to commemorate Road Safety Month. Ramona Doorgen, Coordinator of the Guyana National Road Safety Council noted that there has been an increase of self inflicted road accidents by privately owned vehicles which also resulted in several deaths.
Doorgen is of the view that more can be done to sensitize the public on road safety practices and to ensure that those practices are regularly adapted by road users. She related that the road safety Council has embarked on several programmes to raise awareness for this cause.
“We will be hosting numerous seminars and television programs to raise awareness. We will also be looking to have even more stringent measures put in place and enforced to make the roads safer for both drivers and pedestrians and to have even more severe penalties imposed upon those who don’t adhere to the rules.”
Relatives of the road accident victims, who participated in the event, told Kaieteur News that while they are still saddened by the deaths of their loved ones, they are even more aggrieved by the way drivers continue to use the roadways.
Agnes Debidyal, who lost her 13-year old daughter, Trishanna to a speeding and intoxicated motorist back in December of 2005, noted that she is dissatisfied with the way that the justice system is dealing with such cases.
“We need an active and effective judicial system to deal with such cases because when these cases are prolonged, the relatives who are already traumatized by the loss of their loved ones are robbed of the time to grieve, it makes things even more agonizing to those who have to endure this period,” the woman stressed.
Lucille Bacchus, another participant who lost her two children in an accident 16 years ago, stated that a monument will be erected in memory for those persons who lost their lives due to traffic accidents.
According to recent police statistics, on the whole there has been an 8.1 percent decline in the number of fatalities up to the end of October this year, with 90 deaths recorded, compared with 98 for the same period last year.
Incidentally, five more deaths were recorded at the beginning of November, taking that number to 95.
Pedestrians continue to head the list of road fatalities so far this year, with figures showing that up to October last year, 27 pedestrians were killed.
Meanwhile speeding continues to be a major contributory factor to fatal accidents, causing 63 of the 83 fatal accidents for the year. Pedal cyclists and drivers at 17 each, were the other high road casualties; this is in addition to 12 motorcyclists.
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