Dear Editor,

The circumstances of a multiple fatality accident which occurred on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway in the early morning of May 3, 2009 are not unlike a number of others which have occurred in the last 15 years and have made headlines in the print media.

In reading the report in Stabroek News of May 4, my first logical question was whether the lowbed trailer with the bulldozer on top of it constituted a serious impediment to the safe movement of traffic in the vicinity, and which agency was responsible for drawing attention to this impediment and in what manner. Secondly, for what duration was the impediment parked in a traffic lane and how many Town Day celebrants observed it, in addition to the traffic police, who had a public duty to do something about it. The majority of people in this failed state of Guyana have very short memories and those who observed the impediment would have been mainly concerned with the Town Day bacchanalia at Linden rather than the safety of kith and kin. Thirdly, would it not have been obvious to the traffic police that there would have been increased traffic on the highway as a result of the Town Day celebrations, and that they needed to have an increased presence there, especially at night and during the closing sessions.

I therefore ask how such a hindrance to safe driving could be permitted on the highway unmarked, improperly lighted and unmonitored. What was in the mind of the owner of the disabled vehicle or was it just parked for convenience? Where does the buck stop? I say again that life in Guyana is cheap. Our human resources are no longer our greatest asset, and for good reason. We need traffic chiefs of the cadre of Messrs Fred Peterkin and Jenkins who took pride in their profession and ensured that the rule of law was upheld without any compromise. I have not seen any comments from the Road Safety Association.

I vividly remember Mr Hutton Griffith, a former Deputy Director of Civil Aviation and former Royal Air Force officer, telling subordinate staff at Timehri Airport that if their job was not paying them enough they should leave it, but once they continued to be employed, they should do their job efficiently. He would not have seen an invitee to a CAD Christmas party dressed as I saw in saggy pants and not asked him to leave.

Yes, there are quite a number today in our society who continue to be employed mainly to supplement their salaries in order to upkeep more than their households. They are not concerned with the image they portray in the public arena.

After all, these are not the days when letters of reference redound in great measure to both the character and honour of the writer and the individuals. Did the late JOF Haynes not state that in the days to come one will see in the courts persons dressed in ‘buktas’ and wearing sandals – was this facetiousness?

Finally, could you image a scene last Saturday, May 9 at the 41 bus park where a 41 bus parked on the bridge blocking the exit from the park and there were two others immediately behind with their touts. A bus filled with passengers had to resort to using the entrance by the unused hut to the 41 park as an exit. Immediately across from this entrance in the hire car park was a traffic policeman in a stationary patrol car. So much for service or professional diligence.

Yours faithfully,
Aubrey Alexander