Reports received from our Ba Education Office at 10 this morning confirms a Class 8 student of Varavu Sanatan Dharam Primary School was hit by a mini-van this around 7:15am on the highway, while he was walking to school.
The boy sustained a fractured collar bone and some cuts and bruises and is admitted at the Ba Mission Hospital. Lucky he is in a stable condition.
The alarming road fatalities of previous years are just more than enough warning for any one with common sense to take extra care while using the road.
Whether you’re a pedestrian, passenger or driver, you all have a responsibility to look after your life and the lives of the people you are travelling with while on the road.
Parents and guardians are requested to accompany children to school, irrespective of the distance and type of road travelled. There have been accidents in all types of roads and many a time, if the school is just near home, children are left on their own to go to school. Such complacent attitudes need to change if we really want an end to road fatalities.
Students in school buses or public transport must respect other passengers, especially the elders. Stomping inside the bus or banging the sides of the bus must not be entertained. These actions tell us that these bunch of students are not taught either at home or at school.
Just as we teach our students to respect other people, we also teach them to respect other people’s property and that includes the bus or mini van. There should not be any writing on or ripping off the seats.
The Ministry hopes that students will take this advice seriously and change their attitude to eliminate accidents on our roads.
Filipe Bole
Minister for Education, National Heritage, Culture and Arts, Youth and Sports, Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment.