Rwanda National Police

Impaired driving commonly known as drunk-driving is one of the major causes of road accidents involving buses, which will not be tolerated, Police said.

This is one of the messages delivered to bus drivers on Monday during the ongoing road safety campaign dubbed Gerayo Amahoro, which will run for 52 weeks. The month of June focuses on “Don’t Drink and Drive.”

While addressing bus drivers in Remera taxi-park, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jean Marie Vianney Ndushabandi, the spokesperson for the Traffic and Road Safety department, said that driving while intoxicated is one of the human behaviors that continue to cause loss of lives.

“One drunk-driver is a danger to all passengers on board and any road user. You have to protect not only your own lives but also those of your passengers whose lives are pressed in your hands,” SSP Ndushabandi said.

“We’re not telling you not to drink but we are reminding you to drink responsibly in your off days, if you drink to go on the wheel,” he emphasized.

He also warned against speeding, using a phone while driving and violating roadside traffic control signposts.

Aline Batamuliza, the head of cooperate and Communication at the local brewer Bralirwa Plc, said that safety on road starts with individual responsibility and respecting all traffic rules to protect Rwandans. “Enjoy responsibly, don’t drink and drive.”

Bishop Kihagire, the Executive Secretary for Rwanda Federation of Transport Cooperative (RFTC), urged drivers to “remember that accidents take human lives and deteriorate infrastructures as well.”   

“Alcohol and drugs are the most dangerous things that intoxicate and impair people. You should understand that drinking and driving kill people, destroy vehicles and infrastructures,” Kihagire said.

Eustache Ndagijimana, a driver in Kigali Bus Service (KBS) said that the campaign is necessary.

“This campaign is very crucial, we thank Rwanda National Police for reminding us traffic rules to save people who may lose their lives in accidents,” Ndagijimana said.

“I ask my fellow drivers to not drink and drive. Passengers also have the responsibility of keeping drivers in check. If a driver is drunk, uses a phone or speeds, passengers have a duty to report them because by doing so they are protecting their own lives and the life others,” added Ndagijimana.

Similar messages were also delivered to bus drivers in all bus terminals across the country.