'Road crashes demand collective action, not political blame game' — Julius Anthony

A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) National Communications Team, Julius Kwame Anthony, has called for a united national response to Ghana's worsening road accident situation.

His comments come amid renewed public debate over road safety following recent fatal accidents, including the tragic crash at Birimso Bridge on the Accra-Kumasi Highway.

Speaking on Accra-based Channel One TV's Breakfast Daily show on Wednesday, August 5, Anthony said even though the state has a duty to improve roads and strengthen law enforcement, road users, vehicle owners and contractors also have responsibilities in addressing the growing number of fatalities.

"Our road carnage situation is taking lives disproportionately compared to some of even the top killer diseases. It is a pandemic if we would be honest with ourselves," he said.

He stressed that the causes of road crashes are multifaceted, citing poor road conditions, reckless driving, unroadworthy vehicles and delays in road construction as factors that require collective action.

According to him, government must accept responsibility for enforcing road safety laws and ensuring contractors deliver projects on time, but the issue should not be reduced to partisan politics.

"These issues concern families, and so we should not go into the arena of politics... We accept state responsibility, but we must also appreciate that multiple factors contribute," Mr Anthony stated.

The ruling party's communicator stressed that assigning blame without addressing the underlying causes would do little to prevent future tragedies.