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The Police Administration is to mount a nationwide operation to arrest and prosecute all motorists who violate road traffic regulations.

This move has become necessary because of the indiscriminate use of sirens and horns and the abuse of trade licences by some motorists, especially drivers of official vehicles.

The Director General of the Press and Public Affairs Directorate of the Ghana Police Service, Deputy Commissioner Of Police (DCOP) Rev. David Nenyi Ampah-Bennin, in an interview in Accra yesterday said the trend where government or state officials unlawfully fixed top light on their vehicles with the sole aim of evading traffic was unlawful.

Fitting of sirens

He said some motorists put on their double indicators in their bid to beat traffic and to engage in reckless driving, posing danger to other road users. DCOP Ampah-Bennin said the police had also observed the disturbing phenomenon of micro finance and private security companies installing top light and sirens on their vehicles and using them to evade traffic in utter disregard for road traffic regulations.

He said there was the blatant disregard for the use of the trade licence, where vehicles with trade licences were used to carry people to funerals, weddings, churches, mosques, offices and children to school.

He drew, the attention of motorists and the general public to Regulation 23 [8] of the Road Traffic Regulation 2012 [L.I.2180] which stipulated that: “A trade licence does not authorise the motor vehicle for which the licence has been issued to be used for carrying passengers, goods for hire or reward or passengers who are not engaged in testing the motor vehicles or inspecting the motor vehicle with the intention to purchasing the motor vehicle”, he said.

Number Plates

Furthermore, Regulation 9 (a) and (b) of the said regulations enjoins a person in charge of a motor vehicle to fix two number plates in the front and rear sides so that each letter or figure is upright and easily distinguished from the front and the rear.

The Director General said in respect of the abuse of Regulation 74, bells and sirens might be fitted as a warning appliance and used for official purpose for the following vehicles only, namely a government vehicle used for official purpose by the Head of State, police and Fire Service vehicles.

Ambulances

He said the others were ambulances belonging to hospitals and clinics, recognised government security agency and a bullion vehicle registered by the licensing authority.

“It is clear from the above that all other vehicles not mentioned are excluded from the fitting and use of sirens and bells.”

DCOP Ampah-Bennin said in view of the regulations, the police were going to mount a nationwide exercise to arrest and prosecute all motorists who violated the road traffic regulations.

He entreated the general public to cooperate with the police in the exercise, and warned motorists to desist from committing motor traffic offences for the sake of sanity, law and order.