Member of Parliament for Asante Akyem North, Andy Appiah Kubi, has justified the recent Legislative Instrument (L.I) seeking to amend portions of the Road Traffic Regulations 2012.
The new L.I before parliament, when passed, will grant Members of Parliament and Ministers of State privileges previously reserved for emergency and specialized vehicles.
The amendment of Regulation 74 of LI 2180 will now permit the fitting of sirens or bells as warning appliances on specific classes of vehicles, including those owned by justices of the Supreme Court, Members of Parliament, and Ministers of State.
According to Mr Kubi, the work of an MP requires several meetings to plan projects and policies, and most of these are conducted at different locations.
He argued that some ministers under-perform because they have to stay in traffic for long hours.
Speaking to JoyNews, he stressed that this bill will help take away the stress of sitting in traffic for long hours and allow ministers of state and legislators to move to and fro without hindrances.
“I know the schedule of work that ministers go through and how they postpone meetings outside ministries trying to finish their regular job in office and be confronted with limited time to reach the next destination for the next official duty. You subject such people to the conditions of traffic on the road. Such people cannot meet the deadline and therefore it is imperative for us to give some access to them to be able to meet the deadline,” he said.
The Asante Akyem North MP explained that if the legislators are unable to meet project deadlines, development projects are delayed.
Mr Kubi recounted several instances where legislators and judges have been arrested by the police for speeding.
He explained that, in most cases, these individuals were rushing to their office locations to perform their duties.
He argued that the best course of action is to eliminate such laws, so these individuals can be held accountable if they fail to deliver on their mandates.