Motorists who have warrants of arrest will be arrested immediately during roadblocks, warns Jenny Pillay, an admin clerk at the Road Traffic Inspectorate in Park Rynie.
Pillay came up with the concept, which clinched the award for the most innovative idea.
She thought of a mobile warrant of arrest idea two years ago and it has since been implemented throughout KZN.
She said warrants of arrest and fine payments were a big problem, which prompted her to implement the change.
“Within a year Park Rynie was able to collect almost R13 million of outstanding fines through the mobile warrants,” said Pillay.
She said people were taken from roadblocks to the nearest police station where they had to pay up or were held in police custody.
She said that included motorists who didn’t pay fines and had been issued with notices to appear in court.
Road Traffic Inspectorate chief provincial inspector Aboo Aboobaker describes himself as a man of few words who prefers action and leads by example.
With 28 years of service, Aboobaker is the man behind KwaZulu-Natal’s most successful station, Park Rynie, along the N2 stretch.
He recently received the officer of the year award at the Road Traffic Management Corporation ceremony in the Eastern Cape.
His journey to service excellence began in 1985 when he joined RTI, he says.
“In 1988 I was promoted to a senior provincial inspector. I was transferred to the Pietermaritzburg RTI in 1995 and I was promoted to principal inspector. While in the ranks I was managing other stations like Park Rynie, Pietermaritzburg and Newcastle in my capacity as acting station commander for various stations in the province.”
In 2003, when the new licence cards were introduced, he took over Mkhondeni Test Station in Pietermaritzburg. That year the station won a silver Premier’s Service Excellence Award.
In April 2004, Aboobaker was promoted to chief provincial inspector, a station commander based at RTI Park Rynie. “I have put in a lot of work to bring the station up to the standard where it is today.
“We have brought the most speedsters to court in the province. More than 250 arrests were made in one year for speeding alone,” said Aboobaker.
The highest speed ever recorded on the stretch involved a motorcycle, at 295km/h, while another was clocked at 275km/h, and the highest recorded speed for a car was 252km/h, a black Audi Quattro.
“I consider myself someone that leads by example.
“I am a no-nonsense officer. The law applies to all South Africans and, as far as I am concerned, should be respected and complied with to the fullest extent, to prevent accidents and fatalities on our roads. To me, losing one life is one too many,” said Aboobaker.
Regarding corruption, he said: “I am aware of corruption but because of my interaction and work with my staff, corruption is minimised at Park Rynie.
“RTI Park Rynie’s main objective is to reduce accidents and save lives.”
So far the station has had a good Christmas season, with no major accidents having been reported on the N2 stretch.
“We are the best in the province and I’m proud to have the award for best officer,” said Aboobaker.
Tim Simpson is a decorated traffic officer who has served 23 years.
The provincial inspector won an award for going the extra mile.
“I work extra hours without pay. The chief inspector knows that I am available at any time of the day or night,” said Simpson.
Simpson enjoys the early morning shift the most.
“That is when you catch the really high speedsters. Our commitment here is to save lives, so it is all worth it,” he said.
Simpson says people come up with all the usual excuses when they are stopped.
“My child is sick. I am rushing to a funeral. My wife is pregnant. I am rushing to the mosque. Someone is chasing me, and most recently a businessman who was caught speeding twice in one day told us he was speeding because he was rushing to buy a farm in Port Shepstone,” said Simpson.
Sunday Tribune