"We prize merit above all and never discriminate. This is why we have earned the right to stand tall and proud as one of the best institutions in the country," Zulfiqar Cheema of NHMP.
“Road accidents claim as many as 12,000 lives on average each year,” Highway and Motorway Inspector General Zulfiqar Cheema said at seminar at Ramada Hotel on Monday, “That is way more than the number of deaths from terrorism.”
The seminar was held to discuss key issues regarding road safety, the need to create awareness through schools and an educational campaign by the motorway police.
More than 80 per cent accidents occur due to violation of traffic rules, he said, this raises the question of why licences are issued to incompetent drivers. Cheema said that many drivers were not even aware of basic traffic laws like following traffic signals and putting on seat belts. The situation is bad enough to declare it a national emergency and deal with it accordingly, he said.
Some of the most common causes of road accidents include road rage, speeding, racing other cars and driving under the influence, he said. “The awareness seminars conducted by the Highway and Motorway Police have helped saved many lives,” he said. “Our personnel have strong principles... there is a reason why we are generally considered a corruption-free institution.”
Published in The Express Tribune, October 16th, 2013.
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@smbfhs: "It was very wise of General Cheema to appreciate the low deathrate from planned & dark schemed terrorism compare to unplanned & unfortunate common road accidents....." . Is this a message to PTI that their buddies are safe now? No action would be taken against them.
It was very wise of General Cheema to appreciate the low deathrate from planned & dark schemed terrorism compare to unplanned & unfortunate common road accidents. He could have compared thousands of deaths from diabetes, heart lung liver or kidney diseases or cancers or doctors' negligence but he wanted to make a point of low death from terrorism... in the tune of 40,000 over 10 years. Lack of professional training and sense of public feelings are the clear signs of long road ahead.
In US, car driving is so easy. In Pakistan, you need a big heart to drive on roads. Reason, in US, every road has a max limit speed and every one drive with that speed. But in Pakistan, I havn't seen any max speed limit sign on roads. Everyone in Pakistan drives on their own speed. Second you will hardly see a road bumper (speed breaker) because every one follows the stop signs at smaller intersections. If you find some sign post in Pakistan, soon you will see some poster pasted on that. :)