Long distance taxi buses must play their part

ROOI OLIFANT WRITES:

I stated in a previous letter (“Geld mag nie die virusroer draai”, Republikein of 13 July 2020) that one of the drivers of the Covid-19 pandemic is irresponsibility on the part of community members.

Dr. A.S. Fauci who leads the US Covid-19 response team recently cautioned that young people, due to reasons of arrogance, are the main drivers of this pandemic and in Namibia, it is in no way different from the American context.

One of the ways irresponsible spread of the Corona virus is fast-tracked by young people, is in the public transport sector, especially in the case of long-distance buses and their passengers. Whoever makes use of these services, will agree that long-distance bus drivers, who are young males in all cases, overload their vehicles beyond roadblocks as soon as the bus is out of sight. On top of that, there is poor insistence on wearing of masks, poor ventilation, no sanitizing of buses, and much less an availability of hand sanitiser.

Then there are those passengers who toss their litter out the window which might cause a further spread of the disease pathogen, not forgetting the environmental risks it poses to man and mouse.

Some, if not all of these drivers, get agitated and even downright angry, aggressive and threatening when passengers raise concerns.

Public passengers also experience that some bus drivers speed and drive recklessly in spite of the carnage caused by road accidents, adding to further deaths apart from those resulting from the Corona pandemic.

Bus drivers do not insist on wearing seatbelts and one will experience that checks at roadblocks are poorly carried out, if done at all, and that bribery occurs to avoid traffic fines at times, which I witnessed recently at the roadblock south of Windhoek.

Most buses make only one stop-over between Windhoek and their final destinations in all four cardinal directions. Passengers thus sit for long hours cramped in a small, unventilated space.

By now the following standard measures should have been implemented to curb the spread of the virus:

• Regular sanitizing of buses;

• Availing of hand sanitizers by rank masters at ranks and in all buses;

• Roll-out of roadblocks outside all towns;

• Wearing of seatbelts at all times;

• Availability of refuse bags;

• Constant, rigorous roadblock checks;

• More frequent stop-overs to allow for a breather;

• A fast-responding toll-free number where incidents can be reported and

• Citizens arrests of drivers and passengers who refuse to abide by, and contravene public health safety regulations.

We all have a proactive role to play in order to minimize the spread of Covid -19-related deaths as we all are part of an intricate public network. Corona is a tourist that travels to all corners of the country.

As can be seen from my points above, the way matters are, long-distance buses are a serious public health risk.

Members of the public, especially passengers, are left to the mercy and whims of fate and irresponsible bus drivers to whom only money, and not lives, matter.

This has to stop immediately.