The Hon. Kumah Joseph Kwame, MP-Kintampo North Constituency has provided the government with novel ideas aimed at dealing with the rampant occurrence of road accidents in Ghana which destroy Ghana’s essential human capital through death and irreparable physical harm and injury.
The World Health Organization (WHO) statistics on road accident globally shows more than 1.2 million people lose their lives yearly through road crashes with 70% of such road fatalities occurring in developing countries.
Novel strategies to deal with road accidents in Ghana
The Kintampo North believes Ghana’s road carnage is alarming but can be dealt with. In his submission on the floor of parliament, he said “The fight against road accidents will require an integrated approach since various stakeholders are involved.”
He called for an inter-ministerial action group on road accidents to be established to include stakeholders. He was of the view that, this will help in “coordinating governments efforts in minimizing these accidents through the implementation of recommended mitigation measures”
He further called for the establishment of accident emergency centers across the country, especially in accident-prone areas. The MP-Kintampo North Constituency added that “These centers should be specifically dedicated to road accidents, equipped, and staffed appropriately to swiftly deal with accidents when they occur. Imagine an accident occurring with over 20 injured persons, are we able to marshal the needed number of ambulances to ensure the survival of victims? Your guess is as good as mine!”
Hon. Kumah Joseph Kwame also called for “mandatory stop for all distance vehicles for about 45 minutes during their travels. He furthered that if the MTTD and Ghana road traffic authority monitor this, it will further help reduce the rate of accidents in the country.
He also called for the introduction of speed ramps within some areas in the Kintampo municipality such as, Apaaso through Magazine to Black star, Nwoase, st Joseph’s Catholic Church through municipal Assembly to market junction, Kintampo rural bank to sawmill, Abogyese junction to Benkrom and Newlongoro Bamboi stretch.
On what needs to be done immediately to curb road accidents, the lawmaker called for the following.
- Immediate road markings on the highways
- Replacement of lost and faded road signs
- The establishment of a national emergency trauma/ center to take care of victims in Kintampo
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He further called on the government, NGOs and other stakeholders to help establish the
The emergency response center in Kintampo to help take care of injury cases during accidents on Techiman-Kintampo-Tamale highway.
Source: Ghanaeducation.org