In the face of all the news that made the headlines at the weekend, two road fatalities were recorded in the Southern Division on Saturday.
Police said a man in his 30s is in custody for his alleged involvement in a suspected hit-and-run incident near Naisogo Settlement in Colo-i-Suva on Saturday.
They have his vehicle for forensic testing.
The victim, who was in his 30s, was found lying motionless near Naisogo Settlement in the early hours of Saturday morning. He was conveyed to the Colonial War Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
In the second incident, a woman in her 50s died from injuries she received in a motor vehicle accident along the Queens Highway.
The victim, police said, was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her husband, and it was alleged that he lost control of their car causing it to veer off the road and hit a lamp post.
She was rushed to the Colonial War Memorial Hospital where her death was confirmed by medical officials.
The driver remains admitted in critical condition.
This is what we do every time there are road accidents.
We talk about them.
We raise road safety issues and discuss prevention.
It makes sense. Yes!
But the question is, shouldn’t we be talking about this every day?
Shouldn’t this be part of our lives anyway?
Road safety, we have always said, is critically important in our lives.
There are just too many vehicles running around us. There are thousands of drivers operating them, and there are many near misses, and some fatalities!
In the greater scheme of things, we probably may accept that accidents are bound to happen. Well, they do when we allow them!
But there also is road safety and responsibility!
This can prevent road accidents, injury and even death!
The question next is where do we want to see ourselves sitting?
We can be on the side of caution, or we can take life for granted.
In saying that, we look up to the powers that be to address associated concerns.
That means looking at our licensing process, our defensive driving systems and program.
It means looking at our roads. And that means signage, the state of roads and potholes. We reflect on road markings and visibility at night, which unfortunately in many roads in Suva, is shocking!
Then there is the bit about policing and the impact of the police and Land Transport Authority!
Shouldn’t road safety be embedded in our daily routines, not just in our responses to loss and grief?
So let’s raise community awareness and personal accountability!
We cannot afford to be complacent. The cost is measured in lives!
