Thursday, May 31, 2012
Muscat An alarming increase in accidents and subsequent fatalities in Oman have prompted two top sporting icons to pitch in their voices in an effort to check the rate of road deaths, which are the third highest cause of deaths in the country.
Ali Al Habsi, the Omani English Premier League (EPL) star and biggest name in football in the country, has joined hands with the country’s leading international rally driver, Hamed Al Wahaibi, to carry out a road safety campaign under ‘Safety First’ — a non-profit private company.
Trhough the first week of May, the fatalities on the Oman’s roads increased by almost 14 per cent, despite increased awareness, and a series of seminars and workshops on road safety by the Royal Oman Police (ROP) as well as NGOs and private companies.
“What we see on our roads is really very sad,” said Al Wahaibi, who is popular for his exploits on the world rally circuit.
Admitting that he loves to speed on the rally circuit, the veteran Oman sportsman urged fellow young compatriots not to speed on the roads across the country. “It is shocking to learn that the police have issued over 2.24 million tickets for speeding last year,” he pointed out.
He said that he was shocked to learn from the ROP that there was a 30 per cent increase in the deaths caused by speeding in 2011 compared to 2010. “We felt it was high time to do something for the cause and we are glad that Al Habsi agreed to be a partner, administrator and ambassador in our campaign of Safety First,” he said.
“In 2009 His Majesty (Sultan Qaboos) expressed his anguish over road accidents and [related] deaths, both Hamed and I will use our public profiles to reach out to all road users, young and old, pedestrians and drivers, and raise awareness,” Al Habsi, the Wigan Athletic and Oman goalkeeper, said.
Al Wahaibi said that as part of the campaign Al Habsi will wear the logo of ‘Safety First’ on his wrist band whenever he is on the field starting the next season.
Al Habsi also hopes that his following on social media website Facebook and micro-blogging site Twitter would help him reach a large number of young Omanis as well as expatriates in the country.
Besides these two sporting icons there are others working to raise awareness about the perils of reckless driving and increasing death toll on the roads here.
Al Wahaibi said that they were building strategies and relationship with stakeholders.
“We want to engage with every member of the society. We request every member to be an ambassador to achieve the objective of this campaign of safety first,” he said.
Dr Wahid Bin Ali Al Kharussi, founding member of the Oman Road Safety Association (ORSA), said that anyone who is interested in reducing injuries and deaths on Oman’s roads join the campaign. “All stakeholders should come together to ensure that the number of accidents keep coming down in the coming years,” said the orthopaedic surgeon, who as the head of Orthopaedic Department at the country’s biggest trauma hospital has first-hand experience of the pain and agony of accident victims and their dear ones.
The retired doctor believes that the ROP is doing its best to curb the problem of accidents and resultant fatalities but the onus was now on private sector as well as civil societies. “The civil societies must play an honest role in creating more awareness about the cause otherwise the problem will continue,” he reckons.
Bernadette Bhacker, who has been campaigning for the cause of traffic safety since 2003, also welcomed the initiative by the sporting icons and said: “Different forces can come together but the focus and goal have to be the same,” she said.
Bhacker runs her campaign through a website, www.salimandsalimah.org and has also been making short films to highlight the need to protect children from traffic accidents.
“Two big names in Oman joining the cause is big news and we need more people to join the cause,” she feels.
She advised people to wear seatbelts. “Not only the front seat passengers but everyone in the vehicle should wear seatbelts,” she advised, insisting that seatbelts can avoid more than 50 per cent of fatalities and serious injuries.
Bhacker, who believes in the philosophy of partnership, also stressed that those not fit to drive should not be behind the wheels because they put their own lives at risk and those of others on the road.
“In summer people get tired, they should rest and not continuously drive, those with sickness should avoid driving likewise people should not drive under the influence of alcohol,” she said.
By Sunil K. Vaidya Bureau Chief
Gulf News 2012. All rights reserved.
