EDITORIAL: Drive safely this festive season

While many Namibians look forward to the festive season to catch up with loved ones and get some much-needed rest, this period is often nightmarish for those entrusted to promote and ensure road safety.

Thousands of lives have been lost on our roads over the years, with statistics indicating that most accidents could have been avoided if drivers had only adhered to road laws.

Traffic law enforcers continue to preach the same message every year, but it seemingly continues to fall on deaf ears. One does hope, however, that this time around all of us as road users will do our part to ensure that this festive period is one where safety and precaution take centre stage.

We continue to boast that Namibia has some of the best roads in the world, but the road crash statistics completely ruin the picture.

The anomaly between our road conditions and crash statistics is a clear indictment of drivers and their attitude behind the wheel. It is either that our drivers are not fit to drive, or we believe we’re above adhering to traffic safety rules and regulations.

Increased presence of traffic officers will never be a panacea to the crisis we face as a country because drivers have the ultimate responsibility. Only they can reverse the situation.