DUI, speeding drivers who die in accidents committed suicide – Ramnarine

Despite the Police Force’s Traffic Department recording a decrease in road accidents and fatalities in 2017, there continues to be a high number of accidents that are as a result of speeding and drunk driving, which according to acting Commissioner of Police David Ramnarine, are suicide cases.
At the GPF’s year in review press conference on Friday, Ramnarine disclosed that there were a total of 115 deaths from 100 fatal accidents recorded during 2017. Of the 115 deaths, 71 or 62 per cent were caused by either speeding and drunk driving, or a combination of the two. This is compared to 91 deaths as a result of speeding, drunk driving and speeding with drunk driving from a total of 128 deaths recorded in 2016.
During last year, speeding resulted in 51 deaths, while drunk driving accounted for five and the other 15 deaths were caused by both speeding and drunk driving.
It was against this backdrop that Ramnarine said those drivers who were killed in these accidents have taken their own lives.
“I maintain that in those 71 deaths in 2017 which resulted (from speeding and drunk driving), they were what I call suicide; because suicide is when someone of the age of discretion, voluntarily and intentionally kills themselves. I will not refrain or retract this description, as rude and as hard as it may come across to be. That is the reality we must accept,” Ramnarine asserted.
The acting Top Cop went on to admonish those drivers who continue to speed on the roadways and indulge in alcohol consumption before getting behind the wheel. According to the statistics detailed by Ramnarine, a total of 9640 drivers were subjected to random breathalyser tests in 2017 and of this amount, 3461 or 36 per cent were found to be above the legal limit.
“I dare say if you are a breadwinner, you have a family and friends, what was the thinking at the time when you leave home… Nobody says you had enough, it’s time to go home; nobody says slow down; nobody says ‘hey there’s a turn coming up, you going too fast’, what happened to that? These are things that could save your life and save the pain and trauma and economic loss, among other things, for your loved and dear ones,” the acting Commissioner noted.
Meanwhile, it was noted that the weekend period beginning from 18:00h on Friday evening to 06:00h on Monday has been the most tragic, recording 65 or 57 per cent of the total deaths last year. Additionally, 62 of the total fatal accidents that occurred last year involved private motorcars, as compared to 78 the previous year. The vulnerable group of drivers remain between the ages of 25 to 33.
With the regards to other traffic offences, some 78,763 cases were filed in 2017 which saw a 12 per cent increase against the previous year. These cases ranged from speeding, drunk driving, music in public transport, operating private motor vehicles for hire, operating cellphones while driving, unlicensed drivers, breach of traffic light signals, breach of tint regulations, failure to wear a seat belt, and failure to wear a safety helmet; all of which recorded increased prosecutions.
Commissioner Ramnarine further outlined that in 2016, there were major concerns that too many lives were being lost on the country’s roadways with statistics at the time indicating a 33 per cent increase in fatal accidents and 17 per cent increase in deaths. This, he noted, paved way for the launch of ‘Operation Safeway’.
As of the end of 2017, fatal accidents went down by 15 per cent, while deaths declined by 12 per cent, reflecting 17 accidents and 13 deaths less than in 2016. There was also an 83 per cent decrease in child deaths, which accounts for two such deaths last year against 12 the previous year.
The acting Police Commissioner credited this declining trend to efforts of the Traffic Department and its stakeholders who engaged in public awareness or enforcement activities throughout last year. He continued that more human and other resources have been added to the Traffic Department to boost their efforts.
However, Ramnarine posited that motorists and other road users must play their part and be more responsible on the roadways.