World Remembrance Day of Road Crash Victims!

Yesterday it was World Remembrance Day of Road Crash Victims which was marked on 15th November 2009 at Mnazi mmoja Grounds, Dar es salaam. According to a statement issued by SUMATRA Consumer Consultative Council,The World Remembrance Day of Road Crash Victims find its origin in the UN resolution A/60/5(2005) of the 26th October 2005, which adopted the World Day "as the appropriate acknowledgement for victims of road traffic crashes and their families" and called for its recognition by Member States and the International Community.

The United Nations through the above mentioned resolution decalred that the 3rd Sunday of each November would be marked as the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, and requested member countries and international community to mark it in their respective countries. This year, 2009, will be the first time that a public event is held to mark the day in Tanzania.

As people were marking the day at Mnazi Mmoja Grounds, the picture below shows the victim of a road crash which occured in Dar es salaam At the very moment people were demonstrating along the streets of Dar es salaam to mark the day.

This accident occured yesterday, the victim was driving a motorcycle which was knocked by a fast moving car along Morogoro Road.The leg has been badly injured below the knee. The photo was taken when the victim was being attended at the Muhimbili Orthopaedic Institute(MOI).

But, as we mark this day are we really taking steps to curb the increasing number of motor traffic accidents in the country?

Yesterday

Driving Upcountry-5 (Through Ben Mkapa Bridge)

The bridge is about 7kms long! Indeed a long drive.
On top of the bridge we saw the bridge was sort of swinging when a heavy vehicle passed over the bridge. This forced us to lear more and we ended up under the bridge. We saw these rubbers which acts as shock absorbers!You can see these between the two concrete blocks, up and down.

My colleagues exploring under the bridge!

The bridge from the sides

Wow! white sands under the bridge. We felt like going down and play with the sand, but people sacred that if we do that we'll end up being delicious meal for the alligators living in that river!!

The bridge named after the ex-president, benjamin Mkapa Bridge.

My experiences while driving upcountry have become and more adventurous,I have leanrt alot of staff as far as these trips are concerned! These are the pictures of the Benjamin Mkapa Bridge along River Rufiji. A river known to have tormented people from the southern region of this country whereas during rain season people spent weeks to cross the river. So the construction of this bridge was a revolution for people living in those regions.

My conversation with the people living around the area, that is Ikwiriri they told me that, "The constructin of the bridge was full of surprises, for example when the Italians started the constructions there was alot of ''Supernatural things" happening to the extent that the Italians called all the famous oldmen in the village and they decided to slaughter a bull for a sacrifice so that they could be 'allowed by the ancestors' to proceed with the construction". i talked to more than 5 people and they narrated the same story. But they say the sacrifices were successful and the consruction continued. This strange world!!!!! Well I also learnt that there no accidents occured over the bridge. That is good news.

Spotlight!

"Traffic jams are unnecessary in most parts of the world and it is bad organization that causes them most of the time".

Comments from Blogger, Cuban In London

Am back!

I have been away for quite sometime but i have more and more news to share with you. To start with, i would like to share with you the photos of the accident i witnessed along Dar es salaam-Morogoro Road (at Mikese). This lorry had banana cargo but it ended like this.

Hili La Matuta Kimara Limewakera Wengi!

Nimekutana na hii barua ya msomaji katika gazeti la Mwananchi inayogusia uwekaji wa matuta katika barabara mbalimbali za jiji la Dar es salaam.

"Mimi kama mmoja wa waathirika wa mkasa wa kukwama katika Barabara ya Morogoro,kutokana na ujenzi wa matuta Kimara, Dar es salaam.

Niikerwa na mfumo wa maofisa wanaohusika, wakiwemo polisi na wakala wa Barabara Tanzania(Tanroads), kuruhusu ujenzi huo kufanyika wakati ambao wazungu wanauita 'pick-hour' yaani ule ambao unakuwa na msongamano mkubwa wa magari na kuacha siku kama za jumapili na kuiga nchi zilizoendelea kama Uingereza,ambazo hufanya ujenzi kama huo usiku wa manane wakati hakuna magari mengi.

Hii inaonyesha jinsi tusivyojali wengine, mkandarasi husika alijali fedha na kuwaweka vibarua kufanya kazi hiyo mchana bila kufikiria usumbufu aliousababisha. Hii ni mara ya pili kufanyika hivyo na usumbufu huwa wa kiasi hicho lakini wahusika wanafumbia macho".

Barua imeandikwa katika gazeti la Mwananchi na mbogojj@yahoo.co.uk

Mtazamo wangu: Nikiwa mmoja wa waathirika wa usumbufu uliotokea siku hiyo, namuunga mkono mwandishi wa barua hii, kwakweli Tanroads walistahili kutuomba radhi kwa usumbufu wa siku ile. Tulikaa masaa manne barabarani mpaka askari wa usalama barabarani walipoingilia kati na kusimamisha ujenzi huo.

Marufuku Askari Kuwapoka Madereva Leseni

Polisi mkoani Arusha imepiga marufuku tabia ya baadhi ya askari wa kikosi cha Usalama Barabarani, kuwapokonya funguo na kadi za magari, madereva wanaokiuka sheria za usalama barabarani.

Msimamo huo ulitolewa hivi karibuni na Kamanda wa Polisi wa Mkoa wa Arusha, Matei Basilio, alipokuwa akizungumza katika sherehe za kufunga Wiki ya Nenda Kwa Usalama.

Alisema kumekuwepo na malalamiko juu ya baadhi ya askari wa kikosi hicho kuwapokonya madereva funguo na vitu vingine kutoka kwenye magari, jambo ambalo ni kosa.

"...Kama dereva amefanya makosa afikishwe polisi au alipe faini na kama itakuwa lazima basi afikishwe katika ngazi za juu badala ya kumpokonya leseni au kitu kingine", alisema Basilio.

Source: Mwananchi

Mtazamo wangu: Nashukuru Kamanda Basilio ameliongelea hili kwa sababu inakera sana kuona askari wa usalama barabarani anamnyang'anya dereva wa daladala ufunguo huku akiwa amebeba abiria. Kwanini asimwambie dereva akashushe abiria halafu aipeleke gari kituo husika? Hii inaonyesha ni jinsi gani watanzania tusivyojaliana. Tamko la Kamanda Basilio linastahili pongezi.

Spotlight: Unnecessary Traffic Jams!

From Ubungo to Kibaha, this area is becoming "traffic-jam-prone-areas", but if you ask me, these jams are due to negligence and lack of creativity in problem solving, for example Tanroads was supposed to have a heavey duty 'winch' to remove lorries which breakdown along the road as seen on the photo, so that other users could continue using the road without a hitch. The lorry on the photo, remained in the area for the whole day, this caused jams unnecessarily.

I stand to be corrected, but much as i know, this is a highway how come bumps are everywhere in a highway? If you ask, they tell you bumps are fixed to reduce accidents! Sure? How come there are alot of bumps from Kimara Stop over to Mbezi Mwisho, yet people are knocked down by cars almost everyday.

I think Tanroads Research Unit, if at all they have, should do its homework effectively to come with good solutions rather than just fixing bumps which are now a pain on the neck.