When passengers help drivers bypass traffic laws, police

According to a recent survey by The Citizen, not only are drivers complicit in the illegal cooperation, but so are passengers who use public transportation.

Mr Allen Aidan, 43, of Nyegezi in Mwanza Region, says he once helped a motorbike rider driving without a helmet avoid traffic cops by telling him to take a different route rather than the one that could land him in the hands of the law enforcers.

“I did that because I’m angry about the fining processes that force traffic officers to spend the majority of commuters’ time, disrupting people’s time management,” he explained.

Mr Aidan believes that one of the reasons individuals believe it is usual to assist drivers in avoiding the extended hands of the law is the habit of drivers helping each other through signs, particularly when two vehicles from either side meet.

“This has become something common in the country. Similar incidents are practiced by drivers in different regions I have been visiting,” he said, noting that he has been compelled to do the same.

Ms Amina Said, 24, of Sahara in the Mwanza region claims she has been assisting drivers in evading traffic police officers because she believes the officers are corrupt and dishonest.

“It’s preferable if I continue to aid drivers because traffic officials enjoy bribing,” she says firmly.

“Stopping drivers who don’t abide by road safety laws doesn’t help because those who are supposed to hold them accountable are dishonest and have been looking at benefiting themselves,” he added.

According to her, everyone should hold himself accountable as directed by the country’s laws in order to end the incidents.

“It’s not a matter of me reporting someone to corrupt traffic officials without taking legal measures against the perpetrators in order to discourage any future repetition of the incidents,” she says.

“It is rather possible for the driver to remember me tomorrow after having been aided in an arrest escape despite a violation of road safety laws and regulations,” she adds.

Ms Aneth Michael, 53, a resident of Igoma in Mwanza Region, says she once helped a driver while travelling to Geita Region by telling him to slow down in order to avoid being arrested by traffic officials stationed nearby.

“I was talking to my friend who was in those areas, and he said that he had been fined by traffic officials due to speeding,” she says.

Mr Joachim Kassanga, 42, a resident of Dar es Salaam, says passengers in a minibus were forced to suddenly shift to mourning songs in order to fool the driver and escape traffic arrest after the driver had broken the road safety regulation.

“The driver was driving us on an official road, something that caused him trouble with the law enforcers. But one of the passengers started one of the mourning songs that was positively received by others,” he narrates.

“When the traffic officer arrived, he had nothing to do with us other than sympathise with us and immediately allow us to proceed,” he adds.

Ms Doreen Tesha, a resident of Ngarenaro in Arusha Region, says traffic officials have been unnecessarily putting commuters on hold for a long time when drivers have committed road safety offences.

“They don’t take into consideration that the public transport could have patients going to hospitals, job seekers scheduled to attend interviews, and some others committed to attending very important meetings,” she says.

“This has made them the enemy of commuters. They are generally considered to be people who have been given public uniforms for personal gain,” she adds.

However, Ms Suzan Mwakatobe, a resident of Mbeya, says those who have been doing so are unaware that assisting someone to commit an offence is an offence by itself.

“Out of ignorance, I fell into a similar trap one-day. I did it after seeing other people who have been assisting drivers to escape legal measures after committing road-related offences,” she describes.

She recommends that road safety education be given in abundance to citizens, noting that most of those committing the offence have been doing so out of ignorance.

“Citizens should have enough knowledge of the road safety-related laws and regulations because offences cannot be legalised due to ignorance of the laws,” she says.

A traffic officer in Mwanza Region, Mr Mudathir Hassan, says law enforcement efforts to take action against unscrupulous drivers violating road safety laws and regulations have been obstructed by the drivers’ cooperation as well as by citizens who support disobedient drivers.

“We have been arresting some citizens for involvement in such offences, but their major defence remains that they did so unknowingly,” he reveals.

However, he said once convicted, such citizens would be subjected to different penalties that vary according to the committed offence.

He called on citizens to support traffic officials by exposing drivers who violate traffic laws and regulations so that they are held accountable, therefore reducing accidents and their respective impacts.

“Road safety is for the benefit of all, drivers and passengers; passengers helping drivers to avoid punishment means they are responsible for endangering their safety and that of other road users,” he describes.

As indicated in the penal code, anyone who helps someone commit a legal offence has committed a legal offence with conviction and would be liable to a fine, imprisonment, or both.

An advocate at KZR Law Chambers in Mwanza, Mr Steven Kaswahili, says the laws are clear that everyone should be held legally accountable for the magnitude of the crime committed.

“Embracing criminals is not the right thing and is not something that should be entertained in the country. Citizens should be helpful in supporting prosecution of drivers who endanger the safety and lives of passengers,” he says.

He asked citizens to collect enough evidence of dishonest traffic officers and submit it to senior officers because nobody was allowed to defend drivers who violate traffic laws and regulations.

“Cooperation is required in order to reduce dangers caused by negligent drivers as well as law and regulation violators,” he reveals, noting that the move will make Tanzanian roads safer for both passengers and drivers.

Traffic Police Commander Ramadhani Ng’azi told The Citizen that the offence committed by citizens has been identified mainly due to a lack of education and knowledge about road safety-related laws and regulations.

“We will continue to provide public education to citizens in order to reduce the number of crimes committed due to ignorance,” he says.

He called on citizens to be at the forefront of helping law enforcers with the provision of information on violations of laws that could endanger their safety and properties.

“It is the responsibility of all of us because we all use the roads. We are therefore obliged to ensure the roads are safe in order to increase our safety when using the roads,” he explains.

“Any citizen who commits the offence of helping drivers avoid legal measures will be punished according to the committed offences as per the decisions of the courts,” he adds.