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19 March 2009

One of the 1006 people, who were arrested for drunken driving by the 100 member Provincial Traffic Task Team in the Nelson Mandela Bay during the festive season, was fined R9000 or nine years imprisonment, three months suspended for five years and drivers’ licence suspended for six months by the Port Elizabeth today.

Mohamed Waheed Coopoo was arrested in Gelvandale in December 2008.

“This sentence will give a strong message to everybody who drives on our roads under the influence of liquor that such actions would not be tolerated,” said Roads and Transport MEC Gloria Barry.

MEC Barry has further instructed the Provincial Traffic Task Team to continue its good work after decreasing road accidents in the province by 30 percent over the 2008/09 festive season. During its operations throughout the Eastern Cape, this team achieved the following results:

* A total of 15 716 drivers were caught for various traffic law offences
* 1006 people were arrested for drunken driving
* 501 vehicles were suspended for unroadworthiness
* 822 stray animals were taken off the road
* 579 stray animals were confiscated on N2, N6, R61 and R63
* 5052 summonses worth R1.8 million were issued for various traffic law offences
* 8911 people were reached through stray animal education programmes
* 200 red flags were distributed to shepherds.

In February 2009, it further embarked on another successful operation in the Queenstown area, where they confiscated 29 government vehicles due to illegal use, arrested 76 people for drunken driving, suspended 133 unroadworthy vehicles and issued 779 summonses worth R388 500.

Earlier this month, this team again embarked on a two day weekend operation focusing on drunken driving Port Elizabeth, where 201 drunken drivers were arrested.

Enquiries:
Ncedo Kumbaca
Cell: 082 442 2388

Issued by: Department of Roads and Transport, Eastern Cape Provincial Government
19 March 2009