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Since the beginning of April nine people have died on Northwest roads. This is the same number of traffic fatalities that the province experienced during the same period last year. The only fatality on the eve of Good Friday occurred at 20:45 in Ikageng in Potchefstroom, where a 12-year-old boy was hit by a car.
The angry community members became aggressive towards the two occupants of the vehicle and set their car on fire. They were rescued by police officers.
The other eight people died in Taung in Mogopela village, three in Ledig near Mogwase and two in Lichtenburg. The number of pedestrians hit by vehicles is also increasing, and most of them seem to be from hostels.
The North West MEC for the Department of Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari offered condolences to the bereaved families. The MEC appeals to pedestrians to be extra careful when crossing roads, especially at night.
The MEC has also ordered law enforcers to strictly enforce traffic rules.
“Don’t be lenient on any deviancy but do so within the confines of the law. We want to reduce the fatalities by at least 25% as we reduced them by 21% during the Christmas holidays. We can do so by being visible on all arterial roads”, said MEC Lehari.
Since April 2023, the MEC has been leading joint law enforcement operations across the province. A total of almost 3000 vehicles were stopped during these operations, and fifteen undocumented people were arrested and handed over to immigration officials. Law enforcement operations will continue on all major arterial and local routes.
