Legislator Wants Govt To Enforce Use Of Crash Helmets

A member of the Delta House of Assembly, Mrs Onyemaechi Mrakpor, has appealed to the state government to enforce the use of crash helmet by motorcyclists in the state.

Mrakpor told newmen in Asaba last Friday, that it was worrisome that more than one year after the enactment of the law, it was yet to be enforced.

It would be recalled that the lawmaker who represents Aniocha South Constituency, had, in 2007, sponsored the bill on compulsory use of crash helmets by motorcyclists in the state.

She said the need to stem incidents of avoidable loss of lives and injury to motorcyclists, especially the commercial operators and their passengers, was the reason for the law.

The lawmaker, however, regretted that the law was not being enforced in spite of the government’s extra support to it by distributing helmets to motorcyclists.

While blaming the law enforcement agents for the non-enforcement of the law, the legislator also said that the problem was “sheer resistance of the law by some of the motorcyclists”.

“I also heard that another reason for the non-compliance with the law is because some people, especially women, argue that it will spoil their hair.

“To me, that is a flimsy excuse because the overriding interest which is safety should prevail over fashion,”she said.

Mrakpor said the government should not find it difficult to enforce the law, saying: “If the government can enforce the prohibition of commercial motorcycles from operating from 7 p.m., the use of helmets should not be a problem”.

“Enforcement should be the overriding interest. If the law is working in other states, especially Cross River, there is no reason for it not to work here in Delta”.

“But I think the law enforcement agencies like the Police, the Federal Road Safety Commission and the commercial motorcyclists union are not serious about the implementation.’’

Mrakpor called on the state government and the law enforcement agencies to wake up to their responsibilities.

She gave an assurance that the issue would be revisited in the Assembly to ensure compliance, “so that the funds and the passion put into it will not be wasted’’.

It would be recalled  that the state government had purchased and distributed no less than 500 crash helmets to commercial motorcyclists to encourage compliance.