The Road Transport and Safety Agency has given Scorpion Bus Services seven days to show cause why its operator’s licence should not be suspended or revoked, for employing and allowing an unlicensed driver to drive a Public service Vehicle.
The action led to the violation of the terms and conditions under which the Road Service Licence was granted.
In a letter dated 23rd April, 2019 addressed to the Director of Beta Build Hardware and Electronics, trading as Scorpion Bus services, RTSA have observed that the latter action by the operator is tantamount to violating the conditions upon which the operator’s licence was granted.
This comes in the wake of a road traffic crash on 17th April, 2019 around 19:20 hours, involving a Scorpion bus registration number BCA 8977ZM were 14 people died and 16 injured.
The crash occurred along the Chingola-Solwezi road.
Accident investigations conducted by the Agency, the driver of the bus Eddie Katoyo, was over speeding as evidenced by the fact that he overtook several vehicles and ended up hitting into a stationary truck in the opposite lane.
Further, RTSA records indicate that on 11th April, 2019, the same bus driver was reported to have been driving at excessive speed around Chisamba area on Great North Road after which he was summoned, but did not show up to answer to the charge.
Further investigations into the accident also indicate that the offender Eddie Katoyo was not licenced to drive a Public Service Vehicle and it was further established that the driver gave false information to officers when he presented fake documentation indicating that he was licensed with a PSV licence when in fact not.
According to a statement issued to the media by RTSA Head of Public Relations, the Agency is concerned that the operator could allow or employ an unlicensed and Inexperienced driver to drive a Public Service Vehicle, an action that undoubtedly put a lot of lives at risk further resulting in injuries and fatalities.
Mr. Mubanga said the operator therefore abrogated the conditions of the Road Service License by allowing or employing an unlicensed driver.
He said RTSA is evoking Section 108(16) of the Road Traffic Act No. 11 of 2002 that empowers the Agency to revoke, suspend or vary the terms of a RSL if the conditions subject to which it was granted are not being complied with
Scorpion owner just corrupt them after one week you will be on the road.
Cadres in the country are in a lawlessness mode and the PF government is in support of of this no wonder you have some ministers who are thugs.
Let’s forgive him and move on.
Thanks
BB2014,2016
1.1 Do you know the owner of the bus? And do you know his political party?
Why do you have to give them 7 days when their driver didn’t have a licence its straight forward negligence…this just leaves room for corruption this is why that moron Soko is getting richer everyday I mean what is the bus company going to say? If I was caught by police driving without license would you give me 7 days? Its a road traffic offence …take it the company to court for murdering passengers and let the passenger’s family get together hire a lawyer an sue this company out of business forget RATSA..sue them for gross negligence.
Zambia is destined to be another Zimbabwe.
A wake up call to nationalist PF MPs to impeach Lungu and install a nationalist, honest leader or else, most of you will also go to jail in 2021.
Choice is yours.
K12.84 today
K13.22 on 29/04/2019
K13.78 on May 2, 2019
This is the trend. Wake up
K1,000,000 to 1US dollar Christmas 2019
“…seven days to show cause why its operator’s licence should not be suspended or revoked.” Any smart law breaker is able to figure out how to weave his/her way around such a barrier. Is there no jail sentence for the owner of the business?
Please do the following:
1. Revoke the business owner’s transport license.
2. Fine him heavily for violating the road safety laws.
3. Families of the victims of this senseless needless accident should sue the business owner for millions of
Kwachas.
4. Charge the driver with murder.
If this don’t happen, then we’ll conclude that you’re not serious.
He should be arrested together with all traffic cops who was on duty on that day. They were supposed to stop and if they stopped him then he corrupted them and they are guilty.
Only one person needs arrest and that is ECL. Everything will fall in place.
K12.84
K13.22 on 29/04/2019
K13.78 on 2/5/2019
K1,000,000 to dollar Christmas 2019
Jail the bastards.
Zambia is indeed heading for even more calamities, there’s just too many things going wrong in our country today. Sadly and to make it even worse, the pipo who know/knew when/what to do and where to go; the likes of bene Manase Phiri, Gen Chileshe and many more leaders are passing away at a very fast rate leaving only the under 5s to make decisions. Something has to be done guys otherwise we’re Indeed DOOMED to failure as a nation.
Fine scorpion heavily and suspend their operating license so that they regret using unqualified personnel to operate public transport equipment. Let it be a lesson to deter other public transport operators. Further work on ensuring that immobilised vehicles are removed from the roads to ensure safety for other vehicles. There really are a lot of things rtsa should do and can do if they are concerned about safety on our highways.
The operator was presented with the same fake papers which satisfied RATSA officers who should have known better. If RATSA let him drive after looking at his documents, why should the operator be punished? This should become a lesson both to the operator and RATSA in the way licenses are scrutinized…no one should be punished (especially if the driver died too)
Suspending licenses does nothing their just go back to PACRA an register another company and reapply simple!!
Jail the driver and suspend their license for 6 months. This is a wake up call.
charge him with murder.
Is it the driver’s fault that someone was willing to pay him without papers? We have to start jailing company directors then you will see changes
Charge the driver with murder case and suspend the scorpion!!!!!!!!!. We cannot lose 14 lives just like that………
In the air industry if an airline (or manufacturer) is found to be grossly negligent..the payout alone for lives lost puts them out of business…I can assure you Boeing will pay big for those lives lost in Ethiopia. In Zambia so long as we have dullards for executives and Politicians who are also in the PSV business nothing will change…I mean every driver has to have an ID on them how did this guy get away with it?
Power tools you re impotent to act another operator you come out with guns blazing atase
It is sad that the company could employ a non PSV driver. Firstly how was he employed? secondly the employer must have known that he was overspeeding but because he was bringing more money, he became the best driver.My suggestion is the owner must be charged for allowing an unqualified driver to operate the bus. In the mines it is the mine manager that is charged if it is the fault of management which is the case now for Scorpion. The minister should not interfer in this case as was the last case when the sentence was overturned by a satanic PF minister.
Just donate a healthy sum in dollars to PF fundraising committee and they will overturn your case charges dropped and docile Zambians will just watch!!
You have already found cause to revoke their licence to operate. Why are you seeking to excuse their crime?
This nonsense of PF this Upnd that even when the subject has nothing to do with politics just shows how shallow our people are. People have been killed and all you want is to talk politics. Some of you fellas talking rubbish haven’t even done your basic driving lessons but you have managed to get your driving license. Come on let’s talk about things that can help reduce road carnage. ..this what the topic is about. ..road safety.
So the driver was a repeat offender.Yet he was driving on the roads.The question to RTSA and Traffic Police is why so.Incompetence and corruption at both institutions i suppose.This idea of only seemingly working after tragedies is shameful.
Zambia is lawless country where people would rather respect individuals than the law.
In US and Europe lawyers would be falling all over themselves to get the names of all those families involved before the bus company’s lawyers get to them first!!
Let us be honest on this and blame the employers. How do you employ any driver with out asking him/her to show you the original driving licence? This will never happen in many countries
Thruth be told half of the Zambian motorists do not undergo driving schools as one can easily obtain a driving licence through corruption. You do 4 hours of private driving with a friend who never went to a driving school you know you wil buy a driving licence
Should this not be checked, Zambians must prepare themselves for more accidents and consequently deaths that could easily be avoided. Do know why we have this animal behavior
Good help us change the way think
My condolence to the families of those that perished as a result of foolishness on the part of the employers
This reminds me of a song by Mt Sinai Choir, Namutekenya it’s on youtube
@Ndanje … When the number of accidents and fatalities has become disproportionately high over the years and nothing seems to change, it does become political. What systems and processes to redress this, do we have? Who is in charge and why have there been no major actions taken? When what appears to be a culture of lawlessness has been building over the years, you cannot detach it from politics and who is in power. Either they are colluding with the culture, they are the cause or example or they are not bothered to do anything about it.
It is like the knife crime in the Uk that has been rising again. All stakeholders are now involved at trying to address it – the government is part of it because it has to assess itself and on whether the political will to deal with it has broken down…
…somewhere
the picture is not for the zong tong bus…… it looks like andare anyway the issue is about the lives that were lost.. sad indeed.the driver should be hanged. I witnessed the way these guys drives it really scary.. overtaking even on the blind corner..
Rtsa, take a leaf out of the mining industry book, mopani mining company lost one or two lives and they ceased operations for a while in order to look at other safety areas in their operations. With something like this its time to ensure that all scorpion drivers are licensed and re tested if need be, and ensure all buses have rtsa telephone numbers for passengers to report violations.
I think RTSA should be patrolling on highways like what is always happening in SA at least busy highways should have a towtruck if any vehicle is found broken on the road it’s easy to tow it to either safe place or to there yard in the area to protect other road users they can be doing this at a certain coast or charge if you like as they are going to help save lives.
Comment:cheap labour
Comment:cheap labour, hiring experienced drivers its a waist of money for them…chaiii!!!!
RTSA itself and their so called Traffic division are to blame! Why do we have all those checkpoints? If an unlicensed PSV driver managed to pass all those checkpoints, it tells you that our Traffic Division is Dead in Corruption and all road Users are not safe! Solution is to Fire all Traffic Cops and RTSA bosses for Criminal Negligence of Duty! Employ Safety Professionals from Mines and Airport Corporation who understand Safety! Let the families who lost loved ones sue Scorpion, RTSA and GRZ for incompetence and criminal negligence! Unfortunately even the guy driving the bus called Zambia has no vision and many lives are at risk!
We do not respect ourselves and one another; we do not respect honesty and integrity and we do not even know what standards we would like for ourselves. How else can we allow fraud in EVERYTHING including people’s lives like this. And now, we are giving reason TO SHOW CAUSE… What the heck!!!! Freeze out this bus company and follow them into the ground! Show this as a lesson to others. Do the same to as many as dare to go the same route! Awe mwe! Ifyabupuba lekeni ba mambala
I was advising a young nephew that he should get his driving license in a proper way. …attend driving school, get registered for tests, pass the tests and get the license legally. He said “Uncle, that’s where the problem lies. I will spend on driving lessons and all what you have mentioned but I will still pay the examiner in addition to the examination fees. It’s better I skip the driving school. It makes economic sense “
As far as the law is concerned RATSA should be jointly charged for failing to ensure that the drivers of these vehicles are trained and licensed those issues of suspending operators licenses don’t bring back lives we are tired,too much blood spilled too much cheap talk.