Points Allowed, PM: "No Pressures"

11 years, 2 months ago - 8 February 2013, Le Matinal
Points Allowed, PM: "No Pressures"
Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam, said he will not yield to pressure from those who are saying that their livelihood will be challenged with the introduction of penalty points. It was Wednesday at St. Julien d'Hotman at the inauguration of the New Higginson Road which cost Rs 182 million.

He noted that since the introduction of penalty points in 21 countries in Europe, the number of road accidents are significantly reduced.

Navin Ramgoolam said that the government is investing heavily in infrastructure to improve the safety of the population and traffic congestion across the island. By 2015, the government has invested Rs 29 billion in this area, despite the difficult economic environment prevailing at the international level. He pointed out that Mauritius is currently recording a growth rate of about 3.3%, while in Spain, growth is declining and 26% of the population is unemployed. In other countries, we are trying to reduce wages while in Mauritius, it provides a salary increase (PRB). The Prime Minister said the government has its priorities: to ensure that education and health are free, improve road safety.

The road improvement is needed, said Navin Ramgoolam for bottling costs the country a whopping Rs 3 billion annually. The head of government say there are too many deaths on our roads. In 2000, the country had recorded 148 road deaths, 132 in 2011 and 144 in 2012. He concluded that there was no significant change with regard to the balance macabre experienced by roads although the fleet has increased. While in 1998 there were more than 244 000 vehicles on our roads, there were 411,527 in 2012. We must educate drivers and pedestrians so that they are vigilant on the road.