Here you go... more fudging of statistics by this pathalogical lying Govt of ours. I also noticed the drop in the annual Easter road death toll. But I thought it was because there were fewer motorists travelling due to petrol pumps running dry at filling stations because of the truck driver's strike. Fortunately the Johannesburg Attorneys Association has spotted another cunning lying move by the ANC.
The ANC is running around trying to pretend they're governing this country properly. This is no doubt the reason for pretending the road death toll dropped. The ANC are pathalogical liars who lie about EVERYTHING. So none of this comes as a surprise. More of the same.
ANC LIES - Government's "disingenuous massaging of the facts".
Attorneys question Easter road death toll
The Johannesburg Attorneys Association on Friday called into question the Easter road death toll announced earlier this week by Transport Minister Jeff Radebe.
It was "impossible" to calculate real fatality numbers so soon after the fact, said the association's Michael de Broglio.
"Deaths resulting from serious injuries could not have been included yet," he said, adding that numbers always increased as some of the victims succumbed to their injuries.
Radebe announced on Thursday that the 197 Easter road traffic deaths this year were 34 percent down on the 297 in 2008.
He said 13 people died in two major accidents this year, while 45 people died in eight major crashes last year.
However, the attorneys' association questioned the "publicity stunt convenience" of the announcement.
"It makes for a great story at the end of every holiday period to compare total fatalities from the same period, the year before, to the quick-win positive-spin that the premature release of the number of fatalities so soon after the fact provides to Radebe," said De Broglio.
The government had announced declines in road fatalities for several years now, but the reality, in retrospect, showed a "disingenuous massaging of the facts".
In his announcement, Radebe said there had been a downward trend in road deaths over the past five years, explaining that: "Despite the apparent increase in the national death rate between 2004 to 2007, there may still have been an underlying long term downward trend."
De Broglio said he failed to understand why - if fatalities, motor vehicle accidents and related injuries were down and there should naturally be fewer claims - the Road Accident Fund (RAF) needed legislative changes to reduce what it was paying out.
"If the Minister's figures are correct, there should be a decrease in claims."
Spin would not solve the long term problems increasingly making road safety a challenge in South Africa, he said.
"Corruption in licensing departments, the failure of the RAF to adequately insure South Africans against third party claims and continued failure by the government to make a real difference in road fatalities spells disaster.
"These days one can connect the dots across South Africa simply by marking the vast number of potholes on any map. It remains unacceptable."
THE FACTS
AA Road Accidents - Report
Bad road maintenance and lack of law enforcement are the main causes of the high number of accidents on South African roads, the AA said on Wednesday. AA spokesperson, Gary Ronald, said about 5% of the accidents on South Africa's roads were caused by bad signage and road conditions.
"The lack of road maintenance has led to a complete deterioration of the roads, pushing this number up significantly," he said.
Law enforcement was one of the larger problems, he said, with taxis and motorists alike displaying a flagrant disregard of simple traffic laws.
"In almost every case, a crash is preceded by a traffic violation," he said.
In 2008, there were 9.2 million cars on South African roads and 900 000 accidents, Ronald said. "This accounts for a staggering 10% of vehicles on the road, with a cost to the economy equalling 3% of the national GDP (gross domestic product) and over 42 fatalities each day."
'As big a problem as Aids'
Ronald said road accidents were as big a problem for the country as issues such as Aids and crime.
"It is estimated that, by 2020, road accidents will be third in the leading cause of unnatural deaths, ahead of Aids," he said.
Along with the state of the roads and law enforcement, Ronald said other areas of concern were public perceptions and awareness, corruption, community involvement, road user education and broad education and communication.
SA road deaths 'unacceptable'
Road fatalities in South Africa are unacceptably high said the newly formed Retail Motor Industry Road Safety Foundation.
"We are very concerned about the safety of road users on our roads," said Retail Motor Industry Organisation chief executive officer Jeff Osborne.
"With an estimated 800 000+ road accidents, 15 000 fatalities and several hundred thousand injuries per year, the accident and fatality rates on our roads are unacceptably high."
Related article:-
Holiday road toll higher than stats show Holiday traffic death statistics are skewed, because the government's figures don't include the number of people who died of their injuries. Full Story...
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