The Kumbungu MP has proposed for Road Traffic Act 2004 (Act 683) to be amended by Parliament to proscribe reckless driving that leads to the death of 20-weeks or more fetuses.

Ras Mubarak wants persons who drive or ride a motorbike or cycle dangerously on the road leading to the loss of a 20-weeks or more unborn child to be prosecuted.

“Where a pregnancy of 20 weeks old or more of a female is destroyed before the birth of the child, to a fine of not less than one thousand penalty units and not exceeding two thousand penalty units or to a term of imprisonment of not less than two years and not exceeding five years or to both the fine and the imprisonment,” the document proposing the revision indicated.

The vociferous MP believes such a law will forbid dangerous driving that results in the death of passengers.

The current legislation does not account for unborn children lost due to road carnage which makes it impossible to charge culprits for the death of a child still in the womb.

“Information from the Police and health care facilities indicate that several women have lost their pregnancies as a result of road traffic crashes.

“In order to cure the defect in the Road Traffic Act 2004 (683), it is necessary to amend the Act to ensure that where a driver is convicted under section 1 or 30 of the Road Traffic Act, 2004 (683) in respect of a pregnant woman, the judgment of the court reflects the loss of the unborn baby,” the proposed Bill read.

“An act relating to an abortion or a miscarriage for which the consent of the pregnant woman or a person authorised by law to act on behalf of the pregnant woman was obtained under section 58 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) or any other enactment.”

Read the full statement below: 

In the wake of the death of some 34 passengers after two buses collided on the Cape Coast-Takoradi Highway on January 14, the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) made a startling revelation that some 2,284 persons have been killed by road traffic accidents in 2019 alone.

In the breakdown by the Authority, the Greater Accra region recorded the highest with 449 persons whilst Upper West recorded the least with 59 people.

The Authority subsequently disclosed that they have been given the mandate to prosecute drivers and institutions who fail to abide by road regulations and ensure that Ghana’s roads are safe.