Essential workers, particularly police officers, are exempt from the new traffic law that would have motorists ticketed for using a cellphone while driving.
Head of the Traffic Department, Inspector Elson Quammie and Acting Police Commissioner Atlee Rodney, while confirming the aforementioned, explained that officers are only exempt while on duty.
“When the legislations are made, they always make provisions for essential services and you have, for instance, the seatbelt law; you will find that there are exemptions for emergency officers: fire, ambulance, police when it comes to the strictness of the seatbelt the same thing applies with the cellular phone,” explained Rodney.
The law does not only apply to the use of electronic or handheld devices but also anything that can be a distraction while driving.
“We have cases where persons are distracted by putting on their make up while they are driving and that also can bring about a ticket for 500 dollars,” said Rodney.
Rodney also reminds the public that this law was not meant to punish persons but to prevent accidents.
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PUNISHABLE OFFENCE OR FIGMENT OF IMAGINATION?
Until now, never heard of any law that was passed in Parliament specifically to ‘…Prevent Accidents.’
Nowhere in the law is there a reference to ‘…Traffic Accidents.’
What if there are no accidents? Would a motorist not ticketed?
Do know that sometimes there is ‘…Figment of Imagination.’
Do hope there was no misquoting.
Know that ‘…any law that creates an offence,’ be it criminal or traffic,’ always ‘…intends some form of punishment for any such violation.’
As with the present law, it creates the offence, ‘…Using or holding a ‘…Mobile Device’- cellular phone and any other telecommunication device or apparatus while driving’ [Mobile Device Regulations: No 3 of 2019].
That is exactly what it prohibits, and certainly not ‘…Traffic Accidents.’
Such offence is now ‘…Ticketable,’ as well as ‘…Prosecutable.’
This may either be ‘…an Administrative Fixed Penalty’ or a ‘…Judicially considered;
(a) …Imposition of a fine; or
(b) …Sentence of a term of imprisonment.’
If these are not so intended to be punitive, then what is?
Hands-free Mobile Device, ‘…no prohibition and no ticketing problem.’
The motorist is not holding anything in his/her hand.
He/she has to look to see what button to push though.
This was not considered in the law as a ‘…distraction.’
From professional knowledge of certain enactments, do know that they are passed for ‘…social control, or control of human behavior or ‘…to give legitimacy to the use of something.’
For instance, know of the ‘…Ganja Law’ that allows for ‘…4 live plants to be grown at home,’ and ‘…15 Grammes to be possess and smoke at home.’
However the ‘…seeds or seedlings or vegetable substance are obtained,’ is a different matter.
These are two contrasting pieces of legislation, in that ‘…one prohibits the Use of a hand-held device while driving;’ while the other ‘…allows for the growing and possession of a limited quantity of Cannabis.’
Know that ‘…more than that allows by law or anywhere else it is smoked, is trouble.’
Can’t ‘…Smoke and Drive or pull off the roadway, park and smoke either.’
Can only use a ‘…Mobile Device.’
This can make any sense? If this law is to improve safety on the roads, how does being an essential worker take away the unsafe nature of the act. The first people to uphold the law should be the same police, fire services etc. This is just because we all know that the police are incapable of following the law. This society is just disgusting.
This makes no dam sense!!! Unsafe is unsafe, I am sure if one of those drivers is the cause of an accident the insurance is not going to say “because he is an essential worker he is not at fault. So what is the dam difference here? How about the government provide all essential workers hand free devices!! We the citizens of this nation life is not worth that much?
So hope we don’t c them when they are off duty
And the law don’t try and cover for them
Technology has relieved from carrying a phone in your hand to communicate……As a result I dont see why essential workers should be exempted from this bew traffic law.
I don’t understand.
With Bluetooth technology all over, why is there still an exception?
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