Cape Coast, Aug. 20, GNA - Most Right Reverend Mathias Kwabena Nketia, Archbishop of the Cape Coast Diocese of the Catholic Church, on Saturday, appealed to drivers to be more careful on the roads to help reduce accident= s in the country.

He said due to the carelessness and mistakes by some drivers, the number of orphans, widows and widowers had increased in the society and stressed that everything should be done to address this menace. Archbishop Nketia made the appeal when he addressed more than 500 parishioners of the church, drawn from the St Francis de Sale Cathedral, Amanful St Joseph, Ola and Fourth Ridge and the Pedu St John the Baptist parishes.

They converged at the Tantri Cape Coast 96Accra lorry station after a two hour procession through some of the streets in the Metropolis. They carried placards some of which read, 93drivers, passengers have rights", 93Its dangerous to do wrong overtaking", 93Do not make phone= calls when driving", 94if you are tired don't drive" ,"if you drink don= 't drive" . The Archbishop pointed out that some children have had their dreams of becoming Presidents, doctors and meaningful citizen in society shattered, because accidents have either claimed their guardians or maimed them.

He said the church decided to join the campaign on road safety in honour of little Francis Pius Donkoh, who lost his life in a motor accident in Cape Coast, on January 13, this year, on his way home from school, in th= e company of his siblings, who also sustained various degrees of injury. He noted that due to the accidents on the roads, people were now sacre= d to travel by road since they were not sure of getting to their destination safely. Archbishop Nketia was particularly worried about the way some drivers have the courage to overtake vehicles at curves and other bad portions of the road and called on drivers to be more careful and observe all traffic regulations.

He urged them to always see their passengers 93as gifts of God in the= ir care", and that, it was their 93duty to take special care of them and ta= ke them safely to their destinations".

" God will not spare any driver, who intentionally kill passengers through over speeding, drunk driving and wrong overtaking". He said it was time for all to stand up against the numerous road accidents stressing that, 93enough is enough, it is time drivers stopped blaming their action or inaction on the works of the devil and be more proactive to save the lives of passengers". Mr Robert Mensah, Station Master of the Tantri GPRTU Branch Number one= , thanked the Church for taking such a bold initiative and called on other stakeholders to emulate the example of the Catholic Church.

He said the activity should not be a one day affair, but should be organized regularly to harness the educational campaigns of the Union. He said from January this year to date, no vehicle from the station ha= s been involved in an accident and attributed the success to the regular road safety education they give to the drivers. Mr John Amissah, Station Secretary, said the station has been able to acquire a breathalyzer to test the alcohol levels of drivers before they leave the station with their vehicles.

He said any driver in the process of loading, caught taking alcohol would not be allowed to drive that day and would in addition, be suspended for two months.

He said they ensure that the vehicles are road worthy and the drivers physically fit before being allowed to drive. Mrs Fanny Donkoh, mother of Francis Donkoh, thanked the church for setting up a foundation in honour of her son, and assured that her family would do everything possible to sustain it. She urged drivers to be careful on the road and also endeavour to observe all traffic regulations.