Lamptey Mills In Fresh Trouble

The Accra Motor Court ordered the proprietor of Great Lamptey Mills Schools, Mr Enoch Lamptey-Mills to destroy, within eight months, a rickety school bus.

Additionally, the court, presided over by Mr. Brew Emma Planch, ordered Mr. Lamptey to pay to the police the towing fee of GH¢75.00 from the school's campus at Abossey Okai to the Ministries Police Station.

Mr. Lamptey-Mills was also fined GH¢24O by the Motor Court for using a rickety vehicle as a school bus.

Mr. Lamptey was put before the court on two counts of using a motor vehicle in dangerous condition and exposing children to danger. He pleaded guilty to the charges and was accordingly fined.

The school bus was seized by the police on January 21 from the school campus at Abossey Okai because of its worn out tyres, rusty body parts, weak seats, broken windscreen as well as bad lights.

Assistant Police Commander in-charge of Education Research and Training Unit of the Police MTTU, Alexander Kweku Obeng, told the Times after court proceedings that although the vehicle was in such a bad condition, it was being used for transporting school children.

He said when the condition of the vehicle came to their attention, they proceeded to the school compound to tow the bus to their station after which they served the school with summons to appear before the court.

ASP Obeng urged the public to report to the police, rickety vehicles and other vehicles which are not road worthy but being used on our roads. That, he explained, would help the police to clamp down on such people to save lives.

He said a total of 968 road accidents were recorded in January in the Greater Accra and 1,349 accidents recorded nationwide. Of the 1,349, he said 615 were commercial vehicles and 575 private vehicles with 123 being motor bikes.

He also added that 194 persons were killed and 980 sustained various degrees of injuries while others had their limbs amputated.

ASP Obeng said these accidents were as a result of excessive speeding, unlawful overtaking, rickety vehicles, drunk driving, use of phones while driving and people who use motor cycles.

"Careless driving, people who walk anyhow and engineers who fail to provide basic road infrastructure like zebra crossings and street lights also cause accidents on our roads," he said.