(Maina Mwangi) Murang’a County played host to a Road Safety Training programme last Saturday at the Sagana Stage.
It was the latest in a string of events held by the Motorists Association of Kenya, as part of a campaign by them to tackle a national outcry over road accidents in Kenya – which kicked off on April 5.
The campaign targets all road users namely pedestrians, primary, secondary schools and tertiary, drivers of Public Service Vehicles (PSV), lorries, school buses, taxis, private cars and motorcyclists.
The training session was supported by the Kenya National Highway Authority KeNHA, the Municipal Council of Murang’a, Kenya Traffic Police, Kenya Red Cross Murang’a Branch, and the Advanced Institute of Driver Education besides other well-wishers.
The Central Provincial Traffic Enforcement Officer Job Magutu, Area Traffic Boss Andiema Silas, Kenya Red Cross Murang’a Branch Chairman Julius Maina, and MAK Chairman Peter Murima were joined by representatives from Taxi, Trucks, Private cars, Boda boda and PSV groups operating in Murang’a.
The traffic boss intimated that two out of the six deaths that occur in the province come from Murang’a, and urged the motorists to observe Traffic Rules. He warned motorists that the infamous alcoblow will soon be on the road again to curb drunk-driving, which is one of the major causes of accidents.
He added that the use of mobile phones should be restricted, warning: ‘‘don’t use mobile phones when driving.’’
‘’The habit distracts attention of the driver enormously,’’ he observed.
An accident victim who was present gave a remorseful account of the accident that confined him to crutches. The victim moved the crowd to tears by saying he has since been abandoned by everyone, and that even eating is a struggle.
‘’Learning on proper road safety is the only panacea to the problem.’’ Murima interjected.
Maina asked people attending to accident victims not to be in a hurry to do so because most times they are uninformed on how to handle the victims, making the conditions worse.
“You might think you are rushing victims to hospitals, but you’re rushing them to mortuary by bending and pushing their dislodged bodies,’’ Maina said.
He concluded his remarks by inviting the public to learn First Aid at the Red Cross offices.
