Police urge caution over public holidays
Pini Bothoko | Friday July 18, 2025 11:03
With the President’s Day celebrations upon us, Mmegi engaged the Botswana Police Service Traffic Director, Senior Assistant Commissioner Pilane Sibigi, about their readiness and expectations on the roads. He raised concerns about the surge in road traffic accidents during the holiday period, attributing most of them to avoidable human error.
“This is the period where we record high road deaths because a lot of people will be traveling. We are expecting too much congestion on most of the country’s highways, internal roads, and even roads leading to cattle posts and lands, as it will be a long weekend.” Sibigi said.
He noted that while holidays are meant to be a time of joy and family gatherings, they too often end in tragedy due to reckless behaviour on the roads. Sibigi explained that many motorists lose their sense of caution when gripped by holiday excitement.
“It’s becoming too common to go from having a great time with loved ones and ending up in tragic situations. When people are overly excited, their level of safety awareness drops. They become impatient behind the wheel, overtake recklessly, and ignore road signs. This kind of behavior causes unnecessary accidents,” he said.
He also cautioned against spontaneous long-distance travel that has not been properly planned, pointing out that such trips often lead to fatigue and poor decision-making.
“Some people get excited just because it's a holiday and travel long distances without proper preparation, which puts their lives and those of others at risk. I plead with members of the public to travel only when necessary. If not, they should avoid the roads altogether during this busy period, ” he said.
Sibigi further expressed concern over the continued practice of drinking and driving. He urged motorists to postpone alcohol consumption until after they have safely reached their destinations.
“Drunken driving remains a major contributor to fatal accidents. If you must drink, please wait until you have arrived. at your destination. We cannot afford to lose more lives due to careless decisions such as drunken driving. Last year we recorded 235 accidents, 189 accidents in 2023, which claimed six and three lives respectively, during this period. Amongst these accidents, 30 were serious accidents in which some people were left with permanent injuries, and this calls for more safety precautions on the road,” he said.
Sibigi said most of the fatal accidents during this period occur at night, as it appears that the majority of people, especially young drivers, prefer to travel at night while also drinking alcohol, something that impairs their judgment and reaction. He advised that people should understand that there are consequences when one consumes alcohol and gets behind the wheel, as too much drinking inhibits driving skills, may distort the driver’s vision, and impair their judgment on the road.
“Some young people have the habit of driving amongst villages and towns to entertainment and drinking holes, and early in the morning they would be forced to drive back home while intoxicated and end up involved in accidents that could have been avoided,” he said.
In addition, Sibigi cautioned motorists against speeding and ignoring road signs. He stated that speeding remains the leading cause factor as young drivers like to compete on the road and overtake unnecessarily.
“Some of the most fatal accidents happen in zones where the speed limit is 60km/h, something which shows that some drivers speed unnecessarily. We urge drivers to respect road rules and prioritise safety at all times because road deaths remain a concern,” he said.
However, the police have indicated that they will be intensifying law enforcement operations across the country throughout the holiday, including stop-and-searches, breathalyzer tests, and roadworthiness checks.