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The announcement that the Nationalist Party seeks to curb wardens’ abuse of power makes refreshing reading. This news comes not without a sense of irony and amusement. It appears that the party in government has finally realised that it has given birth to a monster. Hardly a day passes by without contributors, letter writers and citizens complaining that they have been victims of the abuses, vindications and petty behaviour of wardens.
The system has turned into just another tax generating mechanism. Its drive is revenue raising and has absolutely nothing to do with smooth traffic management. The system, emulating systems abroad, started with all the good intentions in the world. The idea was to have better traffic management, less accidents, control of pollution emanating from vehicles, less people driving while using their mobiles, less parking on yellow lines and people would not park their cars all day in time restricted areas. In fairness, much of this has been realised and today drivers are all the more careful in their driving habits.
But at what cost has this been achieved? And by cost we do not simply mean money but also frustration and annoyance on the part of drivers and residence.
Once operational, we were assured that wardens would be very courteous and would be the guardians of traffic regulations. But the system has now got out of control. The method and manner by which wardens dish out fines are objectionable. The arrogance of these small-minded men and women gloating in self-importance is obscene. It is time to clip their wings, tweak the system and remove anomalies.
There surely must be something wrong when the number of people fined for not carrying pooper scoopers while walking around with their pet dog is higher than the number of buses and large vehicles fined for emitting black exhaust.
Rethinking the whole regime is in order. It appears that the secretary general of the Nationalist party and the president of local councils are also of this opinion. It is about time they woke up to reality and suggest ways and means of introducing a fairer and more socially accepted system.
Firstly, the system must be blown open. We need to lift its lid. It must be made fully transparent. Citizens have a right to know exactly where the funds are going and how the revenue is being split.
Rumours are rife. What percentage goes to the council, to the ADT and to the private company operating the system? People need answers to all these questions as their patience is fast running out. People have a right to know who and how the fee of Lm30, half a week’s minimum wage, for speed control was arrived at. People have a right to know that a new camera is installed in a particular area. And it doesn’t make sense to install speed cameras on our small highway network imposing a top speed limit that is inferior to that established by the Highway Code. This smells heavily of entrapment.
The unbecoming behaviour of some wardens has damaged the reputation of local councils. The sense of belonging to the community that local councils were set up to achieve risks vanishing into thin air as councils gain the reputation of money making machines at the expense of residents.
Not unsurprisingly a bi-partisan approach has ensured that all local councils irrespective of which party controls the council participate in this revenue raising exercise. The Labour party criticises the system yet through its councillors operates it as ruthlessly as any Nationalist controlled council.
Reforms must be introduced and fast. All revenues collected from traffic infringements should be thrown back into improving the roads in the particular locality raising the revenue. This will ensure a direct link between payment of fines and upgrading of the roads.
Most of all wardens should undergo training courses for good manners. Most of them have an attitude problem. They tend to be arrogant and bullish when talking to citizens allegedly breaching regulations. They make little differentiation between major and minor offences and never give the citizen the benefit of the doubt. They want their pound of flesh and apply zero tolerance when common sense and a reasonable approach is called for.
Citizens are baffled by this attitude and rightly so!
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