Heated debate over traffic fines in House
Timers a must at junctions, say MPs
Manama : Overburdened with traffic fines, Bahrainis are selling even their furniture to pay up the accumulating traffic dues, MP Jamal Dawood told the House of Representatives during a discussion yesterday.
“People are selling their furniture to pay for their traffic fines. What we receive from the government is the customary phrase: the government cares about citizens’ interests. But, when citizens face serious issues and approach ministries or official authority, or the General Directorate for Traffic, they are told to approach the representatives. This is an insult to MPs, which is unacceptable. More cooperation should come from authorities’ side,” he said.
His statement came while the council reviewed the Government’s reply to a proposal to install timers at junctions, as well as 19 other proposals. Besides Dawood, other MPs also joined the issue demanding installation of timers at traffic signals in as they think it would reduce traffic accidents, offences and fines, and save lives.
Their statements came despite the government’s rejection, deeming the proposal as “impractical”.
“The government says the proposal is impractical and won’t benefit the public. Implement it first and see if it’s efficient or not. People are demanding to install these timers, as they believe it would reduce risks near junctions. Implement this project on a trial basis on one of the Kingdom’s main roads and prove that it’s impractical. We need to take such actions to save lives. This won’t cost the government much,” Adel Al Assoomy, who presented the proposal in 2015, said.
“Majority of offences occur near junctions and crossroads. They’re not all intentional. But drivers drive faster to catch the signal before it turns red, resulting in mishaps. This won’t happen unless adequate systems to alert drivers are installed at each intersection,” the council’s Human Rights Committee Head Mohammed Al Maarifi commented.
DT News reported on Saturday that Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Ministry said in its reply to the proposal that the current smart systems applied at junctions measure the amount of traffic on each side of the road, allowing the more congested side to flow.
The ministry added that the countdown timer system isn’t efficient and caused many fatal accidents in neighbouring countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
In another development, the majority of MPs voted for holding an open debate in their next meeting to discuss the implementation of the Traffic Law and the fuss created recently in regards to traffic fines and its effects on the public.
Jamal Dawood
Adel Al Assoomy
Mohammed Al Maarifi
Rain damage: Compensation demanded
Several MPs have demanded the Government to compensate citizens for the damages caused by the recent rains.
Blaming it on poor infrastructure and lack of preparation from the authorities’ part, the MPs insisted on compensating citizens for the losses they have suffered because of water logging.
This came in the Parliament yesterday while discussing the government’s reply to a parliamentary proposal that instructs to compensate those affected by the rain.
Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning and Housing Ministries confirmed in their reply that they are working together to eliminate the rainwater drainage issue and to complete the rainwater drainage networks in different areas.
Additionally, Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning asserted that a specialised committee was formed in the ministry to tackle the damages caused by excessive rainwater, adding that several citizens were compensated for their losses.
This was denied by several MPs, who claimed that the government didn’t pay for the damages borne by many citizens due to the rainwater.
MP Dr. Majeed Al Asfoor was the first to speak about the issue, saying, “There is a huge defect in the rainwater drainage networks in Bahrain. There should be more coordination between respective authorities to solve this issue. Rainwater damaged several houses in different parts of the Kingdom. They should be compensated for their losses.”
“The repetition of this problem is shameful to happen in an oil producing country. Rain season has become an annual disaster for the people of Bahrain. The issue is repeating annually since last 10 years. Why do MPs have to personally call ministers to provide water suction tankers here and there. Why is the government still working with the same contractors every year if they can’t get the work done,” said the Council’s Second Deputy Speaker Abdulhalim Murad.
One of the strongly opposing voices to the government’s reply was MP Jamal Buhassan, who called for instant and effective solutions to the repeating issue.
“We must avoid this repeating problem and come up with effective solutions. We can’t compensate citizens every year the rain falls. Accumulated rainwater is repeating every year in all parts of Bahrain. We hear statements, but the puddles remain as they are. The government should fundamentally solve this issue,” Buhassan stated, affirming that “no citizens were compensated for their losses yet”.
Buhassan’s statements were rejected by Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Ministry’s Undersecretary Ahmed Al Khayat who was present in the council during the discussion.
“Compensating citizens is tasked to a special committee in the ministry that studies the conditions of the cases and compensate citizens accordingly. The ministry has compensated many citizens so far. We are cooperating with all the other authorities in this regard, mainly Housing Ministry. Around 1000 rainwater accumulating areas were detected this season and close to 450 of the main ones were removed,” said the official.
Abdulhalim Murad
Jamal Buhassan
Related Posts