As thousands of mourners gathered with the family of the late Noah Sikhila Lusaka to pay their final tribute, leaders from Bungoma have called upon the National Transport and Safety Authority NTSA to speedily impress reforms in the traffic sector to curb the menace of road accidents caused by trailers transporting cane.
Bungoma Governor Ken Lusaka who led the family in eulogizing his young brother Noah told mourners that the County government chaired by the Roads and Transport committee should come up with strategies to help in monitoring cane trailers which have so far claimed lives within the County. “My committee must come up with a way to moderate these tractors which have consistently consumed the lives of people, we can’t take this lightly as the number is increasing daily and alarming,” said Governor Lusaka.
Other Leaders present including Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula and a section of Members of the Parliament drawn across the County have called on NTSA together with the law enforcing officers to make sure that all vehicles especially cane trailers adhere to traffic rules.
The Members of Parliament led by Tongaren law maker Dr.John Murumba Chikati said the Authority should make a follow up to ensure that cane trailers do not operate beyond 6pm citing that most road accidents caused by trailers happen at night especially trailers operating with no lights sentiments that were echoed by his Webuye East counterpart Martin Pepela. “The only legacy we can put in memory of our departed brother Noah is to make sure that we as legislatures come up with a law that will help moderate movements of this tractor,” said Pepela.
Kimilili law maker Didmus Barasa on the contrary challenged his colleague Members of Parliament saying that the law has been there saying these accidents have been caused by reckless drivers. Barasa told mourners that as the vice chair of the transport committee in the assembly, most accidents caused by these trucks are either by lack of head lights or reflecting materials that don’t alarm other road users especially when these tractors have mechanical hitches forcing them to get stuck by or on the road.
The deceased was eulogized by his family led by mama Rhoda Lusaka and other close family relatives as a charming man who wore his ever smiling face.
The late Noah Sikhila Lusaka died on Sunday evening when his vehicle rammed into a cane tractor along Kaptama – Kamukuywa road a few meters from his home in Mapela village of Kamukuywa in Bungoma County.
By Thadeus Wachiye
