Editorial
Enforce road safety regulations to protect lives
Dear Editor,
I write this letter to bring to your notice, the increasing rate at which motorists and pedestrians alike totally disregard road safety regulations in the country.
This form of disregard involves drivers of both private and commercial vehicles as well as motor riders ignoring traffic lights and pedestrians crossing roads at unapproved points, especially on highways.
It is sad to say that these acts by both motorists and pedestrians has led to accidents that had claimed so many lives.
However, as a country, we seem not to learn from them.
You only see motorists and pedestrians obey road safety regulations when they see a police officer.
But the question I keep asking myself is, do we need to see these officers before we comply with road safety regulations? Definitely not.
As much as I will like to commend road safety regulators such as the National Road Safety Commission and the police service for ensuring that road safety regulations are adhered to, I would urge them to enforce the regulations to the latter to address this issue.
Of greater concern is the alarming rate of recklessness on the Kasoa highway by young commercial vehicle drivers.
Their attitude have often resulted in altercations with passengers that do the right thing by asking these recalcitrant drivers to drive with caution.
Unfortunately some of the police men (emphasis on some) don not help the situation as they prefer to punish these wayward drivers by demanding monies from them.
I believe that because they are no examples to guide them, they think road traffic regulation can be broken and paid for but what they fail to understand is that there are lives at stake.
Pedestrians that cross highways at unapproved places should be made to face that aspect of the law, if it exists.
I would urge the motorists and pedestrians to have a change of attitude and stop the disregard of road safety regulations to protect human lives.
Ghana must be saved from its current level of degeneration. There seems to be lawlessness everywhere and only the poor seems to be facing the consequences.
Editorial
Let’s respect the dead
Dear Editor,
Growing up as a young man, I watched how families of deceased persons paid respect to their beloved ones.
Right from the mortuary to the funeral grounds, the mortal remains of the deceased are always handled with respect to honour them.
Most of the time, individuals who visit the mortuary to bring the body of the deceased home were required to wash their hands thoroughly with soap and water.
A traditional belief holds that seeing or coming into contact with dead bodies portends a bad omen and may require spiritual cleansing.
However, in recent times, I have seen a number of videos on social media where corpses are handled without care.
In some of these videos, one could see the body of the corpse carried on the shoulders of friends or being made to stand while friends and families touch and take pictures with it.
I find that weird and at the same time disturbing and thinks a lot about the health implications.
According to some health experts, such an act poses a threat to public health as one may not know the cause of the death of the deceased.
Some have predicted that Ghana could face health crisis such as disease transmission as a result of the pathogens present in decomposing bodies, if care was not taken.
As a concerned individual, I share in the view of the health experts.
I believe that if care is not taken, the actions of the youth in handling dead bodies could lead to the spread of diseases.
I, therefore urge the Ghana Health Service to take the issue seriously and address it to avoid any possible future health crisis.
Atom,
Korle-bu
Editorial
Prevent Keta Township from being engulfed by sea
Have you ever dreamed about waking up to discover that everything you own—including your mattress, roof, and all of your memories – has been lost to the sea?
Since the sea has consumed a sizable portion of Keta in the Volta region, the town’s citizens are in a pitiful position. The sooner action is taken to save the town, the better off everyone will be.
The destruction of the Keta by the sea needs to be addressed immediately, or else the township would eventually be submerged under the water.
Our reporter’s visit showed that this once-thriving seaside resort is gradually disappearing. Keta was once a thriving town known for its business, but now some areas are in ruins, with some of the locals looking on in wonder at the destruction caused by the water.
For the residents of Keta, the Atlantic Ocean is no longer a far-off blue horizon. These days, it relentlessly and without invitation circles around their doorsteps, tearing down walls and other structures, erasing memories, and endangering lives.
Many locals have been forced to live with family or friends after the sea destroyed their homes years ago, and other residents find it hard to comprehend that their once-livable habitat is now in ruins.
The problem is that, apart from residences, Keta’s cultural identity being anchored by monuments are gradually disappearing. One remnant of the transatlantic slave trade, the once-imposing Fort Prinzenstein, is now more of a ruin than a monument.
Once more, the ancient cinema where generations of children used to laugh at flickering black-and-white pictures is no longer there, as is the Bremen factory from the colonial era.
Among other things, the original police station has vanished, and Queen Street, which was once the town’s busy backbone, is now a flooded hallway clogged with rubble. There is still more work to be done despite previous attempts to address the issue since the town is fighting while the sea is winning.
Although water is life, in this instance, it is ruining people’s homes. The situation is serious since the water is destroying the town’s past as quickly as it is claiming its future, despite nature taking its course.
But as humans, our Creator has endowed us with the intelligence to solve problems. The historic town of Keta is now shrouded in uncertainty as the remains of a once-inhabited township are submerged and engulfed by the approaching seas along its coast.
Therefore, it is more efficient to have everyone working together to find a long-term solution to this terrible issue
