DURBAN’S Metro Police officers are currently undergoing a high visibility enforcement training programme aimed at capacitating Metro Police officers to ensure road safety ahead of the busy Easter weekend at the Durban Royal Hotel. The three-day training programme started on Monday, 26 March and ends on Wednesday, 28 March, just in time for the Easter weekend when high volumes of visitors are expected to flock to Durban.
The Municipality partnered with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) to provide training for Metro Police officers on High Visibility Enforcement in an effort to improve road safety in the City.
About 25 Metro Police officers across various levels, three doctors and two paramedics are undergoing training. After successfully completing the training course, the group will be qualified to roll-out the training programme to other officers and municipalities in the country.
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Chairperson of Governance and Human Resources Committee, Councillor Barbara Fortein urged motorists to adhere to the rules of the road and treat police officers with respect.
“Road safety is everybody’s responsibility.
During the Easter holidays, we want to improve road safety by reducing road fatalities on our roads. We want to change drivers’ attitudes, while encouraging pedestrians to obey the rules of the road and only cross on designated areas to ensure that they are safe at all times. We want to intensify police visibility to curb violation of traffic rules and we urge drivers not to drink and drive,” she said.
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Councillor Fortein added that the interventions being implemented by the Municipality were in line with the United Nations General Assembly resolution 70/260 on improving global road safety, adopted in April 2016 and acknowledged reducing road traffic deaths and injuries as an urgent development priority.
The training is provided by Dr Othon Sanchez, a former Police Chief of Mexico City and founder of Conduce sin Alcohol programme which resulted in a 35 percent reduction in drinking and driving related crashes and fatalities. This is the first time the programme is being implemented outside of Mexico City.
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