Rawalpindi traffic police need anti-corruption measures, says top officer

AIG notes officials taking bribes, issuing licences to ineligible drivers

RAWALPINDI: The traffic police of Rawalpindi has been found involved in taking money from motorists, bikers on violations and as forced gifts on festive occasions besides embezzling amounts of traffic violation challans.

Punjab Traffic Police Additional Inspector General (AIG) Farooq Mazhar has taken notice of degenerating image of traffic police and city police amongst the public due to corrupt practices.

According to sources, the AIG sent a letter with the title of ‘Anti-Corruption Measures’ to all regional police officers (RPOs), district traffic officers (DTOs) and chief traffic officers (CTOs) for the elimination of corruption on ground level on Sunday.

In the letter, the AIG has expressed reservations over increasing public complaints regarding misbehaviour and corrupt practices of the traffic staff and stated that wardens fearlessly obtained bribes from road users while the supervisory officers did not take any action against it despite public complaints.

The IG expressed that the DTOs and CTOs were responsible for the elimination of roadside corruption and organised corruption such as monthly bribes over traffic violations from different transporters.

The related officials have also been given line-wise guidelines for putting an end to roadside corruption. It has been mentioned that supervisory officers should conduct surprise raids to check bogus challan books and unauthorised pickets on roadsides.

The AIG directed to conduct departmental and criminal action against elements caught red-handed in such practices.

Similarly, he highlighted that organised corruption in a separate sub-head in the letter in which it has been mentioned that it was the official’s responsibility to eliminate the practice of organised corruption including monthly payments from transporters for overlooking traffic violations. It stated that the traffic staff issued special tickets and stickers to such public vehicles for their identification on road.

As a remedial measure, AIG strictly ordered that no public service vehicle (PSV) would run with any particular sticker or sign in future.

In the third sub-head regarding cash handling under challans, all DTOs have been directed to monitor situations where traffic staff collected the amount from motorists themselves which was illegal. The AIG said that such action created a negative image of the police amongst the public and added that there should be stringent action against traffic staff involved in such actions in future. He also directed to keep a vigilant eye on staff which allegedly bribed road users on special occasions like Eid on different pretexts.

Further, the AIG also spotted prevailing corrupt practices in the license issuing system in a separate sub-head. He expressed that the traffic staff directly or indirectly, through touts, issued licenses to ineligible drivers against bribes. He mentioned that such people could be easily witnessed in a large number outside license offices who allegedly have relations with traffic officials in the license branch. Through collusion of touts and traffic officials, licenses were issued to people who did not even fulfill requisites, the letter added.

All related officials have been directed to eradicate the influence of tout mafia and ensure that licenses were issued legally.

Regarding postings of traffic officials, IG stated that it had been observed that traffic staff was not transferred for soft and hard assignments while a number of officials were deployed on postings of their choice. He instructed the related officials to ensure frequent postings of their sub-ordinates according to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Moreover, the high officials have been directed to keep a check on their sub-ordinates for the eradication of all stated corrupt practices and submit a detailed report in this regard to Traffic Headquarters Punjab. The officials were warned that no laxity would be tolerated.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 7^th, 2019.