No police shield for this officer!

It is heartening to read that the Valletta police have won the Police Shield for reducing crime in their area; well done to all concerned. However, I wonder if the Traffic Division will ever be considered for such an award, because, if they ever did, it certainly would not be for enforcing the traffic laws and trying to reduce the number of traffic accidents and deaths on our roads.

On Christmas Eve, I was driving on Burmarrad Road towards Mosta when one of the many loony drivers on our roads, driving a Volkswagen Golf, tried to overtake a number of vehicles on the other side of the road and, just opposite Burmarrad Commercials, came head on facing a traffic policeman.

The Golf nearly smashed into the police officer, who sounded one of his sirens to alarm the culprit. I was sure that at least the policeman was going to turn around and give chase to this cowboy but the offender kept on speeding while the traffic policeman continued on his way in the opposite direction.

This incident confirms why we have so many unruly and dangerous drivers on our roads: law enforcement is non-existent and confrontation, it seems, is not included in the book of instructions of the Traffic Police Division!

Without pointing fingers at individual motorcycle patrol officers, as in the main they are only obeying instructions, this near fatal incident confirms that traffic policemen in Malta are in the main employed for ceremonial duties, directing traffic at traffic lights or gathering at accident spots... but one hardly ever sees them enforcing traffic rules on our roads. Hence, the poor and atrocious standards of driving on our islands with all the ever-growing daily accidents and the frequent fatalities.