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Chaos on Guyana’s roads

Nov 21, 2024 Letters

Dear Editor,

A few weeks ago, I wrote with a heavy heart, expressing my growing concern over the grim reality of Guyana’s roadways. The steady rise in fatalities, almost as if the Grim Reaper himself sits as a silent passenger, has transformed our streets into death traps. These roads, meant to connect lives, now sever them with reckless abandon. Day after day, we witness drivers wielding their vehicles like weapons, and it feels as though some have been contracted not to transport, but to escort lives to funeral homes.

Today, with profound sadness, we wake again to yet another harrowing accident—chaotic, destructive, and life-altering. The victims, stripped of futures, leave behind grieving families—fathers, brothers, cousins, friends—bound now by the shared agony of loss. For too long, lip service has been the balm offered to soothe this hemorrhaging crisis. Those elected or appointed to lead seem content with reactionary measures, setting policies in motion only after tragedy strikes. What good are words when lives are irreparably shattered?

Every morning, we leave our homes with an unspoken promise to return. No one departs their threshold thinking it will be their last. Yet, for many, the return never comes. The carnage is relentless, the grief unyielding. I traverse the East Coast daily, observing, with mounting frustration, lawlessness that unfolds brazenly before the eyes of law enforcement. Drivers blatantly flout the rules, weaving recklessly in plain sight of officers equipped with mobile vehicles—officers who, for reasons unknown, fail to act. Is this negligence? Is it apathy? Or has enforcing the law become a task too burdensome to bear?

Our roadways, the workplace of traffic officers, have become harbingers of death. Yet, these guardians of safety appear blind to their duty, allowing recklessness to thrive unchecked. What will it take for change to come? Must policies be birthed only after those in power feel the grief that so many families endure daily?

The solutions are simple, yet seem impossible to grasp. Officers with mobile vehicles must patrol actively, stopping and charging violators without hesitation. For those whose recklessness knows no bounds, there must be harsher consequences—keys taken, licenses revoked. Let Parliament, so often quick to debate matters of monetary benefit, adopt the same urgency for policies that safeguard lives. Are the lives of citizens worth less than the revenues of the state?

Each accident is a reminder of how fragile and fleeting life is. And yet, it appears our political and social systems have grown desensitized to the loss. Let me ask those in power: if it were your son, your daughter, your brother, or your friend pinned beneath the cold steel of a truck, would the tears in your eyes spur you to action? If your mornings began with empty chairs and the echoes of laughter silenced, would you remain complacent? For too many families, this is their reality. They live this nightmare, day after day, while policymakers sleep soundly, sheltered by inaction. The grim truth is that death does not discriminate. It cares not for the red, green, or yellow of political affiliations. It does not ask whether you worship at a masjid, a church, or a temple. When the impact comes, it obliterates these divides, leaving only devastation in its wake. Yet, as a nation, we cling to these lines, allowing our differences to overshadow our collective humanity.

Let us awaken from this stupor. Let us demand roads that nurture life rather than extinguish it. Let us build a future where our children inherit not highways paved with grief, but pathways to promise. Let us put aside political colors and unite to paint a safer tomorrow—one where the echoes of sirens are replaced by the laughter of those who live to see another day. The time for action is now. Before our roads become memorial grounds, lined with wreaths and etched with names of lives lost too soon, let us reclaim them. Let us ensure that Guyana’s streets no longer serve as silent witnesses to the tragedy of inaction but stand as a testament to our resolve to protect life.

Sincerely,

A Grieving Citizen

Kevin Anderson

(Chaos on Guyana’s roads)

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