The National Insurance Commission and the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) of the Ghana Police Service have commenced training of some seventy (70) national service persons who will be assisting MTTD officers in enforcing road traffic regulations.
The National Service Secretariat has since 2015 been collaborating with the Ghana Police Service, as some national service persons join MTTD officers in enforcing road traffic regulations.
As the verification of insurance stickers forms a key part of the work of officers, the National Insurance Commission has formed a strong partnership with the Police Service where it assists in training national service persons and MTTD officers on how to determine the genuineness of motor insurance.
Speaking to Citi News on the sidelines of a training program organised for national service persons who will be working with MTTD officers in checking insurance stickers in the Ashanti Region, as well as enforcing other road traffic regulations, the Commissioner of Insurance, Dr. Justice Yaw Ofori urged police officers to strictly enforce road traffic regulations.
“The message I am putting across is that, even if you (police officer) want to be nice to the person (driver), you ask the person to park the vehicle and go get the insurance before he leaves. Immediately he leaves, he can cause an accident. The principle is that you don’t put any vehicle on a public road when it has no insurance because you endanger lives and property. If you are to run into by a vehicle with no insurance, what you can get is probably compensation from the compensation fund, but it is not enough to take care of your injuries”.
He believes this will significantly improve insurance penetration in the country and offer a strong form of protection for accident victims.
He says their collaboration with the police is aimed at improving insurance penetration.
“We realized that there is the need to demystify insurance and to do so, the first group of people we need to deal with are probably the police. They assist us in the enforcement of the insurance law. Although the law stipulates that people should not drive without insurance on the streets, the commission or the insurance companies cannot enforce it without the support of the police”.
The National Service Secretariat says the initiative that allows its personnel to join MTTD officers has been a great one over the years.
It is, however, worried about the level of interest in the program, as only 70 persons expressed interest in being part of it in the Ashanti Region this time around.
The Ashanti Regional National Service Director, Alex Opoku Mensah, is thus entreating the youth to take advantage of the initiative to enhance their chances of getting employed in the future.
The Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Afful Boakye Yiadom, believes bringing the national service persons on board will significantly augment the work of MTTD officers in tackling road traffic problems.