Need for demerit point systems

Saturday 31st December, 2022

The Department of Motor Traffic (DMT) has announced that the much-delayed demerit point system will be introduced next year, and those who accumulate more than a specified number of penalty points will be disqualified from driving, and they will have to apply for driving licences anew. This is something long overdue.

The penalty point system is already in use in other parts of the world and has proved quite effective in reducing motor traffic offences. In countries like the UK, even some non-motoring offences such as drivers’ failure to rectify vehicle defects attract demerit points, and therefore drivers/riders have to be mindful of the conditions of their vehicles. There are a large number of unroadworthy vehicles on the roads in this country, and they are responsible for many accidents. Therefore, drivers/riders must be made to pay for taking such contraptions out and exposing themselves as well as others to danger.

The need for tougher action against errant drivers/riders to make the roads safe cannot be overstated. It is hoped that the proposed penalty point system will see the light of day and yield the desired results. Similarly, there are numerous defects in the process of issuing driving licences and they must also be rectified urgently.

Driver training is a big racket, and anyone can obtain a driving licence almost over the counter by greasing some palms with the help of the so-called trainers. All driving schools are not equipped to train drivers and openly collect bribes for examiners and other RMV officials. This practice has to be terminated urgently if good drivers/riders are to be produced. There is a pressing need to establish modern driving schools to produce good drivers.

The demerit point system however should not be limited to drivers and riders. It should also apply to those who steer the country, and when they become disqualified from performing that task they must be made to face fresh trials and qualify themselves again. According to the DMT’s proposed demerit point system, a driver/rider who is disqualified from driving/riding will have to wait one year to apply for a new licence. But the politicians who are rejected at elections for their incompetence, etc., do not face such disability; they can enter Parliament via the National List and undertake the task of running the country, exposing the entire nation to danger.

Laws must be brought in to prevent defeated candidates from entering Parliament as National List MPs. Such appointments are violative of people’s franchise. When a majority of people decide that a person is not fit to become an MP by voting against him or her, at an election, their decision must be respected. He or she must be treated like a driver whose driving licence has been cancelled.

A person who did not contest the last general election entered Parliament through the backdoor and had himself appointed the Minister of Finance. He was all at sea, and his blunders precipitated the economic meltdown. Now, a candidate defeated at the last general election has become the President and Finance Minister. And, the government is going to disqualify drivers/riders who accumulate demerit points!

The electoral equivalent of the driving licence demerit system is ‘recall’. There are some countries such as Switzerland, where there is constitutional provision for recalling MPs and mandates. In a country like ours, where governments are notorious for violating mandates, the recall system will stand the public in good stead. At present, people have to take to the streets to get rid of errant politicians. The recall elections cannot be held under the Proportional Representation system, and they should be given serious thought if a new Constitution is written and electoral reforms are introduced.