I couldn’t help but come to this conclusion that we joke too much as Ghanaians after reading a story on Mirror indicating that drivers in the UK risk paying as much £1,000 for flashing headlights to warn other motorists. This translates to some excess of GHS7,000 for simply flashing headlights to warn another motorist.
The question is, what could a driver warn another of with a flash of a headlight that will attract so much imposition of fines?
So according to the UK Highway Code rule 110 and 111, drivers are required to use their headlights only ‘to show other drivers that they are there’. Subsequently, it warns further that ‘do not flash your headlights to convey any other message or to intimidate others’.
Now here is the catch, the story goes on to say, ‘if drivers warn others about a speed trap implemented by police, they could be in breach of section 89 of the Police Act 1997’.
In Ghana, many drivers, especially commercial ones however competitive, will do all they can to warn their colleagues of the presence of Police or any other inspecting authority like the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA).
I witnessed such an incident on the Spintex road where during one of our many War Against Indiscipline exercises, a staff of a bank located at the spot where we conduct the exercise came to tell me in anger that commercial commuters, ‘trotro’ drivers upon a tip-off had alighted all commuters at the Roundabout for fear of falling short of the traffic code.
She was displeased with us for ‘causing’ the drivers to ‘abandon’ them mid-way obviously because they didn’t qualify to carry her life and that of several others.
About the said drivers, one may call them ‘smart’ for looking out for each other. But in other jurisdictions where the lives of citizens are prized, the act of helping a driver whose action endangers the lives of others by merely flashing headlights is an offence that attracts hefty fines.
I must confess the first thought that struck me as the reason for this story, was that flashing headlights could blind other drivers and their occupants. I was about harping on that to make a call for us to do same.
But I had a shock of my life. Just a mere warning of Police traps could attract this much? How will they even ‘catch you’ to borrow Hajia Hamza’s words? Technology of course!
Look, I have had the unpleasant experience of witnessing drivers put on headlights on the Tema Motorway, the N1 and particularly one that hurt me so much, I couldn’t help but archive those pictures; the Takoradi – Tarkwa road!
Portions of the stretch have rubber trees on both sides, travelling at night on such a stretch without streetlights therefore was simply like driving on a slippery pitch dark narrow highway to hell. And I am convinced this experience is not peculiar to only me.
What made it a painful and scary experience was the flashes of headlights from oncoming vehicles. Monitoring the situation from the back seat of a minibus the effect of the headlight was so blinding I couldn’t help but wonder how the drivers mostly driving at the speed of light on a curvy-pitch-dark-blood-sucking-record-holding-roads were managing to drive us to our various destinations.
What our drivers engage in here as sheer ‘driving courtesy’ is fetching their colleagues in other serious jurisdictions hefty fines that could leave them frowning all year long. But here, our drivers cause each other potential harm and feel proud of reaching yet another destination without dying.
Note that I have not even mentioned the condition of the vision of most of our commercial drivers. None of whom I am yet to find wearing eyeglasses but many of whom are old enough to need same even for basic activities like taking a stroll.
Another thing that kills me inside is the mindless honking!!! No regulation, nothing!!! Any jerk at all goes about honking indiscriminately in a manner that will send even wildlife packing out to the furthest point on earth where some sanity reigns.
But we joke too much. People will find it so odd to be told abusing headlights and horns is punishable! Situations that again, excuse me to repeat that even wildlife and domesticated animals like goats and dogs will find unbearable!
If we do not joke too much, all our highways at least if we are too broke to fix our avenues, will be properly lit and frequently serviced. But if Ghanaian lives are not precious enough to have all highways properly lit, at least there is ample data to show our leaders which of our highways record so much fatalities as a result of how poorly lit it is among other risk factors.
Now Police on the War Against Indiscipline team had indicated that they will soon move to our highways to check speeding. Given how peculiar our level of indiscipline is, I long for this but a part of me, pities them as well. We have a situation where men and women in uniform challenge the authority of the police to arrest them for dangerous offences as driving against oncoming vehicles in their private vehicles on their way home.
We have spent the last eight months convincing Ghanaians that driving against oncoming vehicles is just as silly as signing one’s own death warrant and killing others alongside on your birthday. Our campaign has led to many being fined too. At least if persuasion fails to effect some change in Ghanaians, force should.
While I gladly admit many of my friends have parked their cars at home to join trotros for fear of being caught by the #WAI team over their expired documents, I regret to say that many people are the hard-boiled indiscipline reigning champions who just can’t be bothered.
So are leaders with our active permission and participation are joking with our lives and we shouldn’t feel any special for we have collectively cheapened our lives!
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The writer, Caleb Kudah is a broadcast journalist with Citi FM/Citi TV