Research has revealed that the use of mobile phones whilst driving is one of the major causes of road crashes in the Ashanti Region, Ashanti Regional Police MTTD Commander, Chief Supt. Emmanuel Aduboahene, has revealed.
The Ashanti Regional Police Motor Transport and Traffic Directorate (MTTD) has therefore vowed to stop drivers from using mobile phones whilst driving in the region.
Chief Supt. Emmanuel Aduboahene, who made the disclosure, reminded motorists that driving whilst using mobile phone at the same time is illegal.
He therefore cautioned drivers that had the habit of using mobile phones whilst driving to stop or face arrest and prosecution.
According to him, several deaths and injuries had been recorded on the roads because of the negligence and carelessness of some drivers.
He said in an interview with the media recently, driving with mobile phones has emerged as one of the major causes of road crashes and fatalities in the Ashanti Region.
Chief Supt. Aduboahene stated that his outfit was in the process of starting an operation to stop drivers from indulging in illegalities on the road.
Globally, he said, driving under the influence of alcohol and speeding had been identified as some of the common causes of road accidents.
The Ashanti Regional MTTD Commander said his outfit was eager to prevent accidents in the region, especially as the fastive season is fast approaching.
In line with this, he said intensive police operations would take place on all the major roads, admonishing drivers and other road users to behave well.
In a related development, Parliament has passed the Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill, 2020 which is targeted at protecting the unborn child on the roads.
The bill seeks to amend the Road Traffic Act, 2004 (Act 683) to proscribe acts that constitute dangerous driving and cycling that result in injury and or death of unborn children and related matters.
If assented to, the bill will ensure that the law recognises the loss of an unborn child as a separate and distinct loss and not only an injury suffered by a pregnant woman.
Besides, it will impose harsher punishment on drivers and cyclists whose actions cause injury or death to an unborn child.
Furthermore, it will impose a duty on a driver of a motor vehicle to, as soon as reasonably practical, report to the police station the occurrence of an accident that results in the death of an unborn child.
Legal remedies
Unlike Act 683, the new law will lead drivers and riders whose recklessness results in the injury or death of an unborn child to receive a minimum jail term of three years and a maximum of seven years’ imprisonment when found guilty.
Section 14, for example, prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle on a road when a child of five or under five is on the front seat of the motor vehicle.
