Pointsman looks like he is hitting flies

CONCERNED RESIDENT of Norkem Park writes:

As a concerned road user, I need to point out the following.

The traffic officers from the EMPD have no clue how to do traffic control.

As an ex-traffic officer myself, we were told to always wear reflective jackets and white gloves so you could be visible.

I am referring to the officers at MacDonald’s in Norkem Park. The guy standing at the traffic light does not know how to control traffic. He is always talking to EMPD officers while the traffic backs up.

I feel they must have better training on how to control traffic, rather than sit in the vehicle and stop people for minor offences.

May I suggest that the guy at the traffic lights work together with the traffic officer at MacDonald’s so the traffic can flow.

You just need a bit of commonsense. On November 9 an officer who was controlling the traffic looked like he was hitting flies at MacDonald’s.

Lt Col Wilfred Kgasago, metro police spokesman, replies:

Thanks to the concerned motorist for bringing this to our attention.

The conflated concerns are a bit confounding as they seemingly cast aspersions on the ability of officers to conduct point duty and in the same vein level an accusation of officers sitting in their vehicles while traffic backs up but concentrating on minor offences.

To put the record straight, officers doing point duty do at all times ensure they are clad in reflective jackets and white gloves to be visible. The veracity of the claims that their “hand movements purported to be wrong” will be investigated.

This will be remedied if found to be confusing to motorists as well as the claim that the officer doing point duty is not fully focused.