National traffic police force mooted for SA

Published Dec 7, 2016

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Durban – Fragmented and ineffective traffic law enforcement currently provided by the provincial and local governments could soon be something of the past in South Africa. The national Transport Department is considering introducing a single national traffic law enforcement service, with traffic officers working a 24-hour shift.

Addressing a national traffic Indaba in Durban on Tuesday, Transport Minister Dipuo Peters revealed that the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RMTC) shareholder committee has resolved to establish a law enforcement review committee to review law enforcement across the country and make recommendations.

“The RMTC should work with all authorities in harmonising the Traffic Enforcement Agencies in support of the Section 199 of the Constitution,” Peters said.

She also said they could no longer afford the extensive duplication of services and lack of integration.

“We can no longer delay the progression towards a single, integrated, unified and national traffic enforcement service. The Indaba offers us an opportunity to learn from each other and to reflect on international best practices that we need to adopt to bring traffic law enforcement to world standards,” Peters said.

She also revealed plans to introduce a 24-hour shift by traffic officers.

“In this Indaba there will be people from Public Service and Administration Department because a 24-hour service will need to operate according to public service regulations. We are looking at everything that is all encompassing, but we believe that we are going to implement it in phases once it is ready,” she said.

Don't hesitate to lock up ministers!

In addition, Peters called on traffic officers to adopt a no-nonsense stance when enforcing law and that they should not hesitate to lock up ministers that broke road regulations.

“If you arrest an MEC or a politician that has transgressed the road regulations and laws, you must lock them up like you were going to lock up everybody,” Peters said to huge applause from traffic officers.

“There is no mayor who must tell you that ‘I’m rushing to a meeting’. There is no minister that must tell you that “I‘m late. I’m rushing to a meeting’. There is this bureaucracy that must do the work,” Peters said as the country enters into the festive season.

She also told the hundreds of traffic officers to ensure that nobody interfered with their work.

"Once you start doing favours for a minister, a mayor, priest and that one, where will it end?" she asked.

Turning on corruption, Peters said said it was one of the factors that contributed to high traffic fatalities in the the country.

The recently released South African Citizen’s Bribery Survey named avoiding traffic offence and obtaining a driver’s livers among the five reasons for resorting to bribery.

“It is clear from this survey that the culture of bribery is a major factor in influencing lawlessness on our roads.

“We can never succeed in inculcating a culture of voluntary compliance with the rules of the road if people know that they can buy their way out of facing the consequences of their ill-discipline,” Peters said.

Since 2015, she said, more than 30 traffic officers were arrested on allegations of bribery, fraud and corruption.

Peters made a passionate appeal to traffic officers to avoid corruption because it caused embarrassment not only to God but to their families, community and neighbours.

“Why do you embarrass your profession and that is what I want to ask your colleagues that are involved in this.”

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