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22.11.2014 Feature Article

WHY MOTOR RIDERS IN TAMALE RIDE WITHOUT CRASH HELMET AND SIDE MIRRORS

MOTOR RIDERSMOTOR RIDERS
22.11.2014 LISTEN

It has become a worrying phenomenon in the Tamale Metropolis to see motor riders ride without crash helmets and side mirrors which actually constitute to a greater extent the significant components of the motor bike that ensures the safety of the rider .

From a research I undertook with the use of a probability sampling technique to be specific the simple random sampling technique, it was evident that 7 out of every 10 motor riders in the Tamale Metropolises did not wear crash helmets, in percentage terms just a small fraction of 30 % riders actually wear their crash helmets.

The research also indicated that 8 out of every 10 motor riders have no side mirrors, indicating that a whopping 80% of the riding population have no side mirrors with only a small fraction Of 20% having side mirrors.

The situation here in Tamale has become a very worrying trend since all attempts made by stakeholders to address this menace seems to be falling on death ears despite the increasing number of accident cases in the metropolis due to the lack of side mirrors as well as the increasing number of death cases due to the non-adherence of wearing crash helmets.

From the research it was evident that majority of people who buy brand new motor bikes immediately remove their side mirrors and would naturally prefer to ride without it. Therefore the issue here is not because they don't have side mirrors. Additionally it is a common scene to see riders hanging their helmets on their motor bikes whiles riding.

This worrying situation increased my curiosity as I decided to probe further to find out why these riders deliberately and flagrantly disobey these safety requirements despite the fact that they do it to the detriment of their own lives. In an attempt to find out why? Many issues came up.

To start with I observed that this worrying situation in the metropolis is purely attitudinal and until there is a positive attitudinal influence on the people this menace is likely to continue if not worsened.

Most of the riders I came across where unable to provide me with any tangible or concrete reason why they ride without side mirrors and crash helmets. Some of the reasons they gave was the fact that it was only villagers who use side mirrors and also others complained of the fact that crash helmets were heavy which made them uncomfortable in the process of riding.

Most women however fail to put on their Crash helmets for fear of disorganizing their beautifully decorated and expensive hair styles, since according to them it cost them a lot of money to have the hair styles fixed.

Despite the fact that some of the above listed reasons might sound absurd and ridiculous it accounts for a greater reason why riders in the metropolises flagrantly disobey the rules of the game even in the clear view of the police and other law enforcing agencies.

Quite recently a group of riders in the metropolis embarked on a demonstration against the police and other law enforcing agencies for enforcing the use of crash helmets. It therefore appears as if the police have also left the people to their own fate, how sad and pathetic.

I strongly believe in the need for a paradigm Shift in the approach in solving this menace since ignorance and illiteracy is the major contributing factor to the situation at hand. The police, mass media, road safety commission and other law enforcing agencies have tried their best, but it is time to take action at the grassroots since that is where the problem begins in the first place.

The local people of Tamale have great respect for their chiefs and elders, it therefore becomes Imperative to actively involve the chieftaincy Institution in tackling this issue.

Let's support our chiefs to organize a public discourse on the importance of road safety and the need to wear crash helmet as well as instill the use of side mirrors.

There is also the need to form local vigilante groups to assist the police in arresting the few who will disobey the road regulations. For until we begin to find measures to address this menace things might soon get out of place.

Atchulo Joseph
+2330204186405
[email protected]

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