Opinion | Children’s safety on the road: Are parents aware of what’s happening?

I am not a person who likes to talk a lot but if there is something concerning children’s safety, I will definitely speak my mind.

As a young mother, I always want to see children happy and safe, and having the best life they can.

Today I want to talk about the safety of children who are taken by scholar transport to school.

Throughout my years of working as a journalist, going to countless scenes to cover stories, I have seen what children have to go through while travelling to school and back.

There is nothing as painful for a journalist as having to go to an accident scene where there are children involved, and you find that the vehicle was overloaded or that the transport was not roadworthy.

I have often seen six or seven children squashed on the back seat of a minibus taxi, with the other seats also overloaded.

The children cannot move because they’re packed in so tightly.

What surprises me is that all these children are paying customers, so why would you want to take the risk of overloading a taxi like that? Is it because of money? What about the safety of the children who you are carrying?

There is nothing as painful for a journalist as having to go to an accident scene where there are children involved, and you find that the vehicle was overloaded or that the transport was not roadworthy.

You can’t help asking yourself, what was the driver thinking, taking children in that vehicle? And why did the parents allow their children to be transported in that vehicle?

I always wonder if the parents of the children are even aware that their children are being packed like potatoes into taxis, and if they are, are they okay with it.

Parents need to investigate properly the drivers that they allow to take their children to school. and the drivers need to make sure that the children are safe in their hands.

I once had a conversation with one of the umalumes (uncles) who transport children to school and back, and asked him about this. Guess what? He just laughed at me.

He asked why I was so concerned because the parents of the children beg him to take their children even though there is often no space in his vehicle. He said they are business people and they will never say no to money.

This got me worried as to what kind of parents are okay with putting their children in that situation.

Apart from that, I also see children hanging out of the windows while the vehicle is moving. The driver just continues as if nothing is wrong.

ALSO READ | Dangerous scholar transport

All these things have me asking myself whose responsibility it is to make sure that the children are safe in a taxi.

Is it the parents’ duty or the drivers’ duty? I think they both have a role to play. Parents need to investigate properly the drivers that they allow to take their children to school and the drivers need to make sure that the children are safe in their hands.

I believe that when a parent chooses you to take their child to school, it is because they trust you with their child and believe that you will take care of them. You should not betray that trust.

It is also the parents’ responsibility to check if the car is roadworthy.

As a parent, if you are not happy with the vehicle or the person who transports your children, you have a right to change the transport you use.

You need to always put your child first when it comes to who is transporting them.

With all that being said, I must admit that there are some really good people who transport our children to school.

You will see them parking their vehicles next to the school and getting out to carry or accompany the children onto the school premises. I guess they are doing that because they want to make sure that the children in their care are safe and are inside the school premises.

Those drivers should take a bow because their actions show us that transporting children is not only about money but that you become a guardian of those children while they are in your care — it is your responsibility to ensure their safety when they are with you.

I understand that in some rural areas there is a shortage of scholar transport and parents have no choice but to use what is available. I think it is time that we all stand up, including government authorities, to make sure that children are safe all the time.

These are our future leaders. They have bright future ahead of them. Let us not play with that.
It is in our hands. If we work together anything is possible.

This article originally appeared on The Witness. Read it here.