–Dr. Jagdeo rejects party’s call to reinstate 2am curfew

THE Alliance For Change (AFC)’s call to reinstate its previous 2:00 am curfew, which had failed to put a dent in the crime wave and instead placed a strain on the business community, has been rejected by People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo.

Dr. Jagdeo, during a press conference on Wednesday at Freedom House, described the AFC as “out of touch with reality.”
During a press conference last Friday, AFC’s former leader and previous Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, called for the 2:00 am curfew to be reinstated.
“The AFC advises that the 2am curfew which was in place under the coalition government be reinstituted. It would have avoided so many deaths on our roads,” Ramjattan said.
In response to this proposal, Dr. Jagdeo, who also serves as Guyana’s Vice-President, said: “The 2:00 am Curfew never worked. It was a useless thing. Nobody goes out on a Friday night or Saturday night before midnight.”
He then pointed out that this proposal does not cater for the business community which receives traction during the night.

Additionally, Ramjattan’s call ignores the fact that road fatalities also occur during the day and not only in the night.
However, the PPP General Secretary acknowledged that more work has to be done to alleviate road fatalities and accidents.

The Government of Guyana will be expending much more resources on public education and greater enforcement, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali previously stated.
He highlighted several strategic policies implemented by the government to address road fatalities across the country. However, the Head of State highlighted that there is still a greater need for public awareness.
In 2022, the National Assembly had passed the Motor Vehicle and Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill.

The amendments also provided for shared responsibility. This change allows for bar owners to also be held accountable in the instance of an accident, once aware they should not serve individuals who are operating motor vehicles.
And, if found culpable, they can be charged.

The passage of the bill saw the charge of motor manslaughter being introduced.
This will see a person who causes the death of another by driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs being charged with motor manslaughter.
There are also harsher penalties for the charge of causing grievous bodily harm while driving under the influence of alcohol or a drug.

Previously, the penalty was a fine between $30,000 and $60,000, or 12 years in prison. The new legislation introduces a $200,000 fine for first-time offenders and no less than $300,000 for repeat offenders.
The Bill also states that persons convicted under this section will be prohibited from holding or obtaining a driver’s licence for 12 months.

Additionally, the fine for driving or attempting to drive while blood alcohol levels exceed the prescribed limit has been moved from $7,500 to $200,000.
Meanwhile, President Ali disclosed that the government is inching closer to establishing its electronic ticketing system to remove human biases on the roadways.
Concurrently he noted that government is expanding and rehabilitating all major throughways as it is critical to have adequate infrastructure to match the massive influx of vehicular traffic.