Drive at a moderate rate and spare us further carnage

Sep 16, 2015 Letters

Dear Editor,
Vehicles belonging to the Guyana government have been involved in many fatalities, accidents and near disasters on our roads.
I am not aware of the training, if any, drivers of these vehicles receive, but it is certainly a clear and present danger. I am urging the forces that be to look into this matter urgently and arrest this lawlessness.
The drivers of the Guyana Police Force demonstrate time and time again that they are above the traffic laws of this country. And I am not talking of cases of emergency.
I observed PLL 5650 being driven in a dangerous manner on many occasions in clearly non-emergency matters. On the morning of June 6, 2015 PLL 5650 and another marked Police vehicle were racing down the East Bank Highway in a most dangerous manner. Ten minutes later, I passed them parked at a snackette having breakfast and a jolly good time.
Another poor practice of many Guyana Police Force drivers is to traverse the roads with their lights flashing while cruising about and sometimes using their sirens indiscriminately. The purpose of the light and sirens is to signal to other drivers to pull aside since an emergency situation is taking place. Again lack of training and/or violation of policy are on display here.
When the police use these emergency indicators in a carefree fashion, it’s only natural for drivers to not take them seriously over time and sometimes ignore them in cases of real emergencies.
Time and space won’t permit me to elaborate on Police vehicles patrolling at night without lights, no headlights, no turn signals, no brake lights et cetera. These same officers somehow manage with a straight face to confront drivers for similar violations.
Police escorts for President Granger are also demonstrating a high level of arrogance and indiscipline on the roads.
Yesterday, driving south, approaching the Soesdyke junction, a police escort was driving towards me at an extremely high rate being halfway in my lane. This road is three lanes wide on his side and there was no hindrance to him, so I couldn’t understand why he was driving down my side of the road.
I refused to pull over, but slowed down.
The driver kept coming at me flashing his lights but I still refused to pull over. At the last minute he swerved back over and kept going. A few seconds later the presidential convoy came speeding along with some of the security cars pulling the same maneuver.
These officers are endangering our lives. If President Granger needs the entire road for his convoy then maybe his security personnel should opt for helicopter travel.
It’s rather foolish in my view to run citizens off the road in an attempt to ‘protect’ the president. But ‘protect’ him from what? These vehicles are loaded with guns and weapons of every conceivable nature. Can’t they simply just drive down the road at a moderate rate and spare us further carnage?
It was only yesterday as well that a police officer from Leonora Station ran over 11 year old Parmini Persaud on the pedestrian crossing. Other vehicles had stopped for the child to cross. The officer overtook the line of cars and almost killed the child. He too had on his sirens and lights headed to a non- emergency.
Security is important, but is the President’s life so precious that his security personnel are willing to kill me so that he could be on his way?
On May 11, I voted for change. It is my firm belief that every facet of this society needs thorough examination and overhauling. We endured 23 years of recklessness. It is time.
If I drove the way some of these agents of the government do, I’d be rightfully considered insane and probably charged.
President Granger, please talk to your officers.
Mark Jacobs

Editor’s note: All over the world, the protocol is that once you hear the siren of the President’s convoy, it is time to get off the road.

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