Kenyans continue to lose lives unnecessarily due to careless motorists driving under the influence of alcohol.
The worst are drivers of public vehicles whose actions endanger dozes of passengers’ safety.
Whoever is deemed unfit to drive on Kenyan roads should be kept off until they have paid for their misdeeds.
An Eldoret court’s verdict to keep a drink driving convict off the roads for a year is the way to go if the number of accidents is to be brutally cut.
Kenyans continue to lose lives unnecessarily due to careless motorists driving under the influence of alcohol.
The worst are drivers of public vehicles whose actions endanger dozes of passengers’ safety.
Statistics indicate that Kenya loses at least 3,000 people every year to traffic accidents with nearly half the number beings pedestrians.
Economically this translates to about Sh45 billion the actual loss of lives excluded.
The National Transport Safety Authority attributes this to speeding and inadequate pedestrian facilities.
The other worrying trend is the rising cases of injuries and deaths caused by the popular boda bodas who seem to operate under their own rules.
Tales abound of hospitals that have set aside wards specifically for motorcycle riders. Clearly, this points to a deteriorating situation that must be arrested.
This is what the safety authority must ensure that whoever is deemed unfit to drive on Kenyan roads is kept off until they have paid for their misdeeds.
Otherwise Eldoret magistrate Harrison Barasa’s decision would be in vain.
