Traffic Police Spokesperson ASP Faridah Nampima has questioned Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwaago’s approach of defiance towards the ongoing operation on Boda Bodas across cities and major towns.
She rather advised him to focus on the roles of the Town Council and Local authorities as well highlighted in the Traffic Act.
“I don’t think the Mayor is happy when we lose 1,021 riders because of head crashes on the road, who is going to vote for him? Who is he going to serve when people are dying in accidents?” Furious Nampiima cautioned.
The ongoing operation on boda boda cyclists started last week, according to Nampiima, the move to regulate Boda Bodas is legal and life-saving.
“The regulation is clear, we are operating within the law. Bodaboda riders should just comply with the law such that we fight carnage on our roads,” she said
ASP Nampiima noted that the enforcement of boda-bodas lately is under safety in the Traffic Regulations Act where she reaffirmed that all their operations are within the law.
Since the operation on bodabodas in the whole country started on November 7, a total of 12,217 motorcycles have been impounded, 10,167 have been issued with EPS tickets and over 2,000 are still pending clearance at police stations.
The traffic police report of 2021 indicated that there was a slight increase in figures of road users killed and those seriously injured compared to those in 2020 and this was attributed mostly to their behavior while using the road.
Politics has always been at the center stage in the Bodaboda sector which currently employs more than 200,000 people within the capital. It is because of this issue that the latest Kampala Capital City Authority census indicated that out of 42,000 riders only 156 had needed requirements.
Nampiima also noted that this operation still continues as planned further thanking all riders and the general public for the compliance support. On the other hand, she also called upon those who are yet to comply to do so.
From January to September, over 1,000 lives of riders have been lost in road crushes with head injuries being the lead cause.
