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Regular Chronicle readers perusing a story last week of a policeman who died after being dragged by a fleeing pirate taxi in the city centre would be forgiven if they thought the story was a follow up from the previous day when the paper carried an uncannily similar story.
Few can believe that in a space of two days, motorists, in separate incidents, attempt to run over police officers doing their lawful duty at roadblocks.
A number of cops have been killed or injured at roadblocks after motorists ignored their orders to stop.

A solution is needed to this problem before it goes out of hand and results in more deaths. We believe that manning a roadblock should be a routine and safe endeavour that when police officers leave home in the morning, their families should expect them back in the evening, not news that they have been killed or maimed by a wayward driver.

That motorists are required to obey orders given by police officers at roadblocks is basic knowledge, if one got their licences through the proper channels.

The problem these days is some drivers are using unorthodox ways to get their driver’s licences and don’t know how the Highway Code, which contains basic driving lessons, looks like.

It is these drivers who pose the greatest danger to police officers.
While police should do their duty unfettered, they must keep in mind that no job is also worth dying for. Some police officers are unnecessarily exposing themselves to harm by their conduct on the roads.

For instance, trying to remove an ignition key from a car in motion is very dangerous and should be banned.
While the police are to be commended for trying to bring to book offending drivers, there is no need for officers to put their lives in danger.

All cars on the country’s roads are registered. If a car flees from a roadblock, police officers should note down its registration particulars and make a follow-up with the Central Vehicle Registry.

With improvements in technology, help is also, in most instances, a phone call away. With checkpoints along most roads leading into the city, a call from a cellphone to the next roadblock to look out for a certain car can lead to an arrest with no injury or loss of life.

The arrest of the pirate taxi driver alleged to be responsible for the death of a cop in the city centre last week shows that criminals cannot get away.
Although no one noted down the number plates of the car which the alleged killer was driving, except its model, police investigations led to his arrest.

Police commanders need to instill new tactics in their officers to deal with traffic offenders. Since the problem of fleeing drivers mostly involves pirate taxis and commuter omnibuses, this seems to be an extension of the cat and mouse game between public transporters (both registered and unregistered) and the police force.

Commanders need to understand why mostly public transport drivers have become so brazen that they ignore police orders.
Commuter omnibus drivers and owners must also take heed of the advice by Bulawayo Provincial police commander Senior Assistant Commissioner Stephen Mutamba that people feeling short- changed at roadblocks should take the matter up instead of endangering lives.