adminTHE four-day Easter holiday starts today and ends on Monday.
This time of the year is usually marked with festivities as the Christian world celebrates the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Big church gatherings have become a common feature as Christians observe this holy holiday.
The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus is symbolic of the restoration of Christians’ eternal faith in God to remain focused in serving the Lord.
Both Christians and non-believers will be busy during this time of the year, which brings people together from all walks of life.
A lot of planned and unplanned travelling has become a common phenomenon.
This affords relatives and friends a chance to catch up and reflect.
Alcohol is usually in huge supply, during this holiday, with drinking sprees being the order of the day.
In football, high-profile games are played during this time of the year.
However, the Easter holidays are also known for claiming many lives, through road carnage.
In the sub-region, South Africa is known for recording the highest number of casualties on the roads during this holiday period.
In Zimbabwe, the police, in conjunction with the Traffic Safety Councilof Zimbabwe, have been holding massive campaigns against road carnage.
They have been clear in their message on the need for vehicles, which do not meet the required standards, to be removed off the road.
Most of these accidents are as a result of drunk driving and negligence.
Speeding is one of the known factors, which causes most road accidents, especially during this time of the year.
Heavy police presence is needed on the roads to weed out rogue drivers who are putting the lives of others at risk.
We call upon the police and their stakeholders to be firm and flush out rogue drivers.
However, drunk driving can be avoided if road users abide by the traffic regulations.
Last year, during the festive season, the police won the hearts of many when they revealed they were going to to introduce breathalysers to curb cases of drunk driving.
Four months after the announcement, we are still waiting for the rollout of these programmes.
With the long weekend starting today, this could be the right time to implement the programme.
For those travelling as families or groups, they need to engage drivers of sober habits.
Those travelling long distances, must use recommended forms of transport.
Police should also be firm in dealing with touts, who are infamous for harassing travellers, by forcing them into unroadworthy vehicles.
Drivers must adhere to traffic regulations and avoid putting passengers’ lives at risk through dangerous driving and drunk driving.
We should all cooperate to avoid yet another bloody Easter holiday.
Everyone has a role to play and we should not just expect the police toplay the leading role in all this.
Together, we can find a way to ensure that it won’t be a bloody Easter holiday.
Online Reporter