Senegal: government under pressure after new road drama having killed 20

This accident comes as the State has announced about twenty measures, criticized by transport professionals, to strengthen road safety.

mo12345lemonde with AFP

A collision between a bus and a truck killed 20 on Monday, January 16 in Senegal, where carriers resist measures adopted a week earlier after the death of more than 40 people in another accident. “Still another fatal accident on our roads at the entrance to Ngeun Sarr. 19 Lost human lives,” tweeted President Macky Sall, before the government revised the highlight to bring it to 20 dead and 24 injured , including 19 serious.

A witness interviewed by private radio RFM reported that the bus had made a gap to avoid one of the many donkeys that wandered on or at the roadside in Senegal. The shock occurred near the locality of Sakal, in the Louga (North) region. On January 8, it was the bursting of a tire, according to the investigation, which had caused the telescoping of two buses in the center of the country: 42 people were dead, according to a new assessment.

These accidents highlight the ailments of the road, well known in Senegal as in many African countries: dilapidated and dangerous development of vehicles, inconsiderate driving, corruption of agents responsible for enforcing the laws or passing the permit To drive … The drama of January 8, one of the deadliest in Senegal in recent years, has aroused a flow of criticism against the authorities for their inability to enforce the rules of conduct, but also the regulations on the state of vehicles.

The government has announced around twenty measures in the process. Many of them are criticized as being inapplicable by transport professionals, who deem them in phase shift with economic realities or lifestyles – for example the ban on buses and minibuses to circulate at night or the prohibition of ‘Import used tires. But Monday’s accident “highlights the need to strengthen road safety measures,” reaffirmed the head of state on Twitter. 2>

Unlimited strike

Part of the transport unions announced an unlimited strike from Tuesday to protest. “Sector regulation: the State in a big cork”, titled on Monday, on the first page, the newspaper Le Quotidien. The authorities quickly reversed on one of the measures announced, the prohibition to equip the luggage carriers, and granted a period of one year. “Aria-Hidden =” True “>

Buses conveying passengers as well as goods are an essential means of transport between localities, for lack of other solutions. Buses are commonly processed to increase their capacity and equipped with roof racks often overloaded, to the point of threatening handling. Not only do passengers gladly take large effects, but luggage racks are an additional source of income for carriers.

The government would have made other concessions. A trade union organization refused to strike after obtaining the revision of various measures announced, for example on the maximum age of vehicles authorized to drive, during a meeting at the Ministry last week, said an official quoted in the press .

Another reason for confrontation between the government and the carriers in an inflationary context: prices. Minibus operators have just announced an increase in their prices in the Dakar region, arguing from the recent decrease by the State of fuel grants and the increase in 100 CFA francs (0.15 euros) of prices diesel and super. The government has refused this increase, which would be illegal according to him, failing to have been validated by the authorities.