Edward leads province's safer festive campaign!

LIMPOPO Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba aims to achieve zero road deaths in the province this festive season.

Ramathuba said this during a parade to officially kick-off the season campaign programme on Tuesday, 3 December at the Mantsole Weighbridge along the N1 road.

The slogan for the campaign is "Edward", which stands for every day without road deaths.

Ramathuba was joined by Transport and Community Safety MEC Violet Mathye and Health MEC Dieketseng Mashego.

The campaign promotes road safety and aims to reduce accidents during the festive season. It seeks to raise awareness among road users about adhering to traffic regulations, especially during the festive season when there is increased travel for family visits, vacations, and church pilgrimages, resulting in higher traffic volumes.

"The activation will feature roadblocks, law enforcement checkpoints, and the distribution of road safety materials to drivers and passengers," said the premier.

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The campaign highlighted national accident hotspots, including R37, N1 to Musina, Dendron Road, and R71 road. These routes have been identified as high-risk areas for road crashes, and proactive measures will be implemented to ensure safety for all road users.

"The accidents result from human behaviour. Drivers seem to forget why it's important to be a driver and their responsibility," she said.

Pedestrian deaths remain a concern. "On Sunday, 1 December, we lost 10 lives from 13 accidents, and out of the 10 lives, six were pedestrians. All this happened at night. I'm tired of crying," said Ramathuba.

She urged traffic officers not to take bribes during the festive season.

"As traffic cops, don't think you're worth R500 so that you don't give a driver a ticket. If you take that money and the same driver is involved in an accident where innocent lives are lost, know that you're the cause of that accident," she said.

The premier said that traffic cops cannot be the ones causing people to die on the roads. "This December we don't want trouble. I've cried enough, especially on the N1 road. This time we are going to give our people tough love," she said.

Ramathuba said that all her 10 MECs, including members of Parliament and ministers, will be deployed to different roadblocks in the province to ensure zero fatalities.