Apologies if this isn't the right place to post, but the SA interest forum has disappeared?? Or I can't find it.
Anyway, the
LIGHT BRIGADE must be stopped, so please bear with me and if you're in SA, please sign the petition and forward it. The photos didn't copy her but they're on the link. No more bikers run down by this abuse of power!
The Justice Project SA are trying to make a difference – please sign and support this petition discussed below, look at all the incidents quoted, it affects all of us.
Please sign the petition, “Like†the FaceBook page, put a link to the site on your Facebook status! This abuse of power has to stop!
Dear fellow concerned citizen.
Please may we ask that you forward this email to everyone in your contact list so as to get the message out and get people to their voices to the petition? As you know, the process only takes a minute (or two if you type really slowly or have a lot to say). There is not much time for people to sign up as this is an urgent matter and we are closing the petition to public participation on 30 November 2011 so delaying signing it could mean that others may not get an opportunity to do so in time.
People forward utter nonsensical emails all the time but this email is one that SHOULD be forwarded far and wide and as quickly as possible.
Ban the “blue light brigades†NOW – before anyone else gets hurt or killed!
If you haven’t done so yet, join the petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011
As at 10:30 on Monday, 14 November 2011, 3750 people have added their names to the petition. This represents just over 0.03% of South Africa’s licensed driver population.
Just so everyone knows why this petition has been launched, I would like to put a few things in perspective:
1. On Saturday 5 November 2011, Matric pupil Thomas Ferreira was crashed into by the driver of a BMW X5 who went through a red traffic light whilst using a blue light (and no siren) in Krugersdorp on the West Rand. Thomas has sustained a serious head injury, amongst other injuries and as at Monday 14 November, he is still in a coma and now has double pneumonia on top of it. The Premiere of Gauteng Province, Nomvula Mokonyane has committed to pay Thomas’ medical expenses and whilst it would not be reasonable to expect anything less, there would never have been any medical expenses in the first place if a “blue light abuser†had not disobeyed the law in the first place!
Thomas’ mangled motorcycle
2. The driver of the BMW X5 that hit Thomas Ferreira, Semietsi Joseph Modomai was allegedly hospitalised from Saturday 5 to Monday 7 November, yet this photograph was taken of him shortly after the crash:
Does this look like a man who needed to be hospitalised
to you? He looks just fine to me!
3. There is something very fishy about the story surrounding Thomas’ incident and whether MEC Humphrey Mmemezi whose vehicle this was and the Premiere of Gauteng herself have nothing to hide, then one has to ask why they have refused to say where he was being driven to in such a hurry. That is of course if he was indeed in the vehicle as has been claimed – not that this would make one iota of a difference in any case. Police have confirmed that Semietsi Joseph Modomai has been charged with reckless or negligent driving and to date, there has been no talk of charging him with attempted murder as has been the case with civilians who have been involved in similar crashes where the outcome of an action could easily have been foreseen as being life-threatening. As is usually the case in South Africa, double-standards are being applied.
4. Prior to the incident involving Thomas, multiple other incidents involving blue light brigades have occurred, although very few make the news.
a. In June 2008, a VIP officer in an armed convoy fired three shots at the vehicle of an 84-year-old motorist who was deemed a "threat".
b. On 15 November 2008, VIP protection personnel shot out the tyre of a KZN motorist who did not get out of their way in time.
c. In January 2009, a VIP officer working in a cavalcade shot an unarmed motorist after he "got too close" in the traffic, and officers subsequently seized and deleted material from a SABC cameraman who recorded part of the incident.
d. In April 2009, a VIP unit officer on his way to collect the Mayor of Msunduzi spat in the eye of a woman motorist.
e. In February 2010, a VIP protection officer pulled a firearm on a motorist he crashed into, again in KZN.
f. Also in February 2010, a 25 year old Cape Town University student was arrested for allegedly showing the middle finger to a blue light brigade conveying president Jacob Zuma. He is suing the cops and it was his incident that brought about a ban on blue light brigades in Cape Town.
g. In April 2010, a motorist laid charges against a blue light brigade cop who climbed into him after overtaking him at speed on the N3 freeway near Villiers, only to rush into a garage convenience store.
h. In May 2010, a pedestrian was killed when he was hit by the Mercedes Benz of Mpumalanga's MEC for roads and transport on the N4 highway about 5km from Malalane in the direction of Nelspruit.
i. In June 2010, one of JPSA’s members, who is also a crash investigator clocked a blue light brigade doing over 200km/h on the N1 freeway from Bloemfontein to Johannesburg. When he caught up with them, they had left the doors of their black BMW X5 open to run into the toilets at a filling station.
5. Blue Light Brigades have been successfully banned by the Provincial Government in the Western Cape and in Cape Town, where only the President and the Deputy President are now allowed to use cavalcades.
6. Sections 58 and 60 of the National Road Traffic Act were amended “on the quiet†some time ago, to allow “any person issued with the necessary authorisation†to:
a. Have blue lights and sirens fitted to their vehicle;
b. Disregard any and all road traffic signs – which includes proceeding through red traffic lights, driving on the shoulder, etc. and
c. Break the speed limit.
These amendments were made with no consultation of relevant individuals on the parliamentary road safety advisory committee. BUT the provisions DO NOT grant carte blanche for such people to disregard the safety of other road users and it is this that has not been taken into account.
7. Besides the obvious “blue light brigade†draw-backs, the proliferation of blue lights being fitted to motor vehicles has spiralled out of control, both in an “authorised†manner and in vehicles used by criminals to hijack people and commit a host of other crimes. These criminals have “piggy-backed†on the proliferation of these lights and it has become extremely difficult for motorists to distinguish between legitimate police, blue light brigades and blue light gangs.
8. Stopping for blue flashing lights has become very dangerous and not stopping for them, or making immediate way for them has also become an extremely hazardous thing to do. In some cases, where motorists have felt threatened by unmarked vehicles with blue flashing lights and have driven to places of safety, like filling stations and police stations, they have been severely assaulted and abused by traffic officers and police.
9. If you as a motorist and responsible citizen in South Africa feel that the time has come to bring about a ban on “blue light brigades†then please stand with us by signing our petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011. There are 9.5 million licensed drivers in South Africa and even if only 1% of our driver population signs this petition, it will outstrip the next highest amount of signatories to a petition ever in South Africa by some 40,000.
10. If you feel that you would like JPSA to take this matter to court then you can contribute to a trust fund that has been established for this purpose. The details of this account are as follows:
BURGER ATTORNEYS TRUST ACCOUNT
STANDARD BANK MELVILLE BRANCH
BRANCH CODE: 006105
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 271 375 175
USE REF: LIGHTS
Please note that this petition and any actions arising from it has NO political motivation, agenda or affiliation and JPSA strongly advises the public and politicians alike to refrain from trying to use it as a political “brownie points†scoring exercise. We will not side with any political party nor will be condone the behaviour of politicians who think that they are so important as to be allowed to endanger the lives of South Africa’s Citizens and road users.
If you haven’t done so yet, join the petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011
Best Regards,
Howard Dembovsky
National Chairman - Justice Project South Africa (NPC)
Association Not For Gain | Incorporated as a non-profit company under the Companies Act, 2008 | Registration Number 2010/019972/08
Mobile: +27 (0) 82 418 6210
Fax: +27 (0) 86 647 3293
Website: www.jp-sa.org
Follow JPSA on Twitter
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere" – Martin Luther King
JPSA Head Office: Ground Floor, 500 Kyalami Boulevard, Kyalami Office Park, Kyalami, Midrand, 1684 – Click for Map
PDF attachments to this email require Adobe Acrobat 7 or later in order to open them.
Please recirculate this critical email far & wide!
If you haven’t done so yet, visit http://bit.ly/vdAF30 to join the petition.
Anyway, the
LIGHT BRIGADE must be stopped, so please bear with me and if you're in SA, please sign the petition and forward it. The photos didn't copy her but they're on the link. No more bikers run down by this abuse of power!The Justice Project SA are trying to make a difference – please sign and support this petition discussed below, look at all the incidents quoted, it affects all of us.
Please sign the petition, “Like†the FaceBook page, put a link to the site on your Facebook status! This abuse of power has to stop!
Dear fellow concerned citizen.
Please may we ask that you forward this email to everyone in your contact list so as to get the message out and get people to their voices to the petition? As you know, the process only takes a minute (or two if you type really slowly or have a lot to say). There is not much time for people to sign up as this is an urgent matter and we are closing the petition to public participation on 30 November 2011 so delaying signing it could mean that others may not get an opportunity to do so in time.
People forward utter nonsensical emails all the time but this email is one that SHOULD be forwarded far and wide and as quickly as possible.
Ban the “blue light brigades†NOW – before anyone else gets hurt or killed!
If you haven’t done so yet, join the petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011
As at 10:30 on Monday, 14 November 2011, 3750 people have added their names to the petition. This represents just over 0.03% of South Africa’s licensed driver population.
Just so everyone knows why this petition has been launched, I would like to put a few things in perspective:
1. On Saturday 5 November 2011, Matric pupil Thomas Ferreira was crashed into by the driver of a BMW X5 who went through a red traffic light whilst using a blue light (and no siren) in Krugersdorp on the West Rand. Thomas has sustained a serious head injury, amongst other injuries and as at Monday 14 November, he is still in a coma and now has double pneumonia on top of it. The Premiere of Gauteng Province, Nomvula Mokonyane has committed to pay Thomas’ medical expenses and whilst it would not be reasonable to expect anything less, there would never have been any medical expenses in the first place if a “blue light abuser†had not disobeyed the law in the first place!
Thomas’ mangled motorcycle
2. The driver of the BMW X5 that hit Thomas Ferreira, Semietsi Joseph Modomai was allegedly hospitalised from Saturday 5 to Monday 7 November, yet this photograph was taken of him shortly after the crash:
Does this look like a man who needed to be hospitalised
to you? He looks just fine to me!
3. There is something very fishy about the story surrounding Thomas’ incident and whether MEC Humphrey Mmemezi whose vehicle this was and the Premiere of Gauteng herself have nothing to hide, then one has to ask why they have refused to say where he was being driven to in such a hurry. That is of course if he was indeed in the vehicle as has been claimed – not that this would make one iota of a difference in any case. Police have confirmed that Semietsi Joseph Modomai has been charged with reckless or negligent driving and to date, there has been no talk of charging him with attempted murder as has been the case with civilians who have been involved in similar crashes where the outcome of an action could easily have been foreseen as being life-threatening. As is usually the case in South Africa, double-standards are being applied.
4. Prior to the incident involving Thomas, multiple other incidents involving blue light brigades have occurred, although very few make the news.
a. In June 2008, a VIP officer in an armed convoy fired three shots at the vehicle of an 84-year-old motorist who was deemed a "threat".
b. On 15 November 2008, VIP protection personnel shot out the tyre of a KZN motorist who did not get out of their way in time.
c. In January 2009, a VIP officer working in a cavalcade shot an unarmed motorist after he "got too close" in the traffic, and officers subsequently seized and deleted material from a SABC cameraman who recorded part of the incident.
d. In April 2009, a VIP unit officer on his way to collect the Mayor of Msunduzi spat in the eye of a woman motorist.
e. In February 2010, a VIP protection officer pulled a firearm on a motorist he crashed into, again in KZN.
f. Also in February 2010, a 25 year old Cape Town University student was arrested for allegedly showing the middle finger to a blue light brigade conveying president Jacob Zuma. He is suing the cops and it was his incident that brought about a ban on blue light brigades in Cape Town.
g. In April 2010, a motorist laid charges against a blue light brigade cop who climbed into him after overtaking him at speed on the N3 freeway near Villiers, only to rush into a garage convenience store.
h. In May 2010, a pedestrian was killed when he was hit by the Mercedes Benz of Mpumalanga's MEC for roads and transport on the N4 highway about 5km from Malalane in the direction of Nelspruit.
i. In June 2010, one of JPSA’s members, who is also a crash investigator clocked a blue light brigade doing over 200km/h on the N1 freeway from Bloemfontein to Johannesburg. When he caught up with them, they had left the doors of their black BMW X5 open to run into the toilets at a filling station.
5. Blue Light Brigades have been successfully banned by the Provincial Government in the Western Cape and in Cape Town, where only the President and the Deputy President are now allowed to use cavalcades.
6. Sections 58 and 60 of the National Road Traffic Act were amended “on the quiet†some time ago, to allow “any person issued with the necessary authorisation†to:
a. Have blue lights and sirens fitted to their vehicle;
b. Disregard any and all road traffic signs – which includes proceeding through red traffic lights, driving on the shoulder, etc. and
c. Break the speed limit.
These amendments were made with no consultation of relevant individuals on the parliamentary road safety advisory committee. BUT the provisions DO NOT grant carte blanche for such people to disregard the safety of other road users and it is this that has not been taken into account.
7. Besides the obvious “blue light brigade†draw-backs, the proliferation of blue lights being fitted to motor vehicles has spiralled out of control, both in an “authorised†manner and in vehicles used by criminals to hijack people and commit a host of other crimes. These criminals have “piggy-backed†on the proliferation of these lights and it has become extremely difficult for motorists to distinguish between legitimate police, blue light brigades and blue light gangs.
8. Stopping for blue flashing lights has become very dangerous and not stopping for them, or making immediate way for them has also become an extremely hazardous thing to do. In some cases, where motorists have felt threatened by unmarked vehicles with blue flashing lights and have driven to places of safety, like filling stations and police stations, they have been severely assaulted and abused by traffic officers and police.
9. If you as a motorist and responsible citizen in South Africa feel that the time has come to bring about a ban on “blue light brigades†then please stand with us by signing our petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011. There are 9.5 million licensed drivers in South Africa and even if only 1% of our driver population signs this petition, it will outstrip the next highest amount of signatories to a petition ever in South Africa by some 40,000.
10. If you feel that you would like JPSA to take this matter to court then you can contribute to a trust fund that has been established for this purpose. The details of this account are as follows:
BURGER ATTORNEYS TRUST ACCOUNT
STANDARD BANK MELVILLE BRANCH
BRANCH CODE: 006105
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 271 375 175
USE REF:
LIGHTSPlease note that this petition and any actions arising from it has NO political motivation, agenda or affiliation and JPSA strongly advises the public and politicians alike to refrain from trying to use it as a political “brownie points†scoring exercise. We will not side with any political party nor will be condone the behaviour of politicians who think that they are so important as to be allowed to endanger the lives of South Africa’s Citizens and road users.
If you haven’t done so yet, join the petition at http://bit.ly/vdAF30 before 30 November 2011
Best Regards,
Howard Dembovsky
National Chairman - Justice Project South Africa (NPC)
Association Not For Gain | Incorporated as a non-profit company under the Companies Act, 2008 | Registration Number 2010/019972/08
Mobile: +27 (0) 82 418 6210
Fax: +27 (0) 86 647 3293
Website: www.jp-sa.org
Follow JPSA on Twitter
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere" – Martin Luther King
JPSA Head Office: Ground Floor, 500 Kyalami Boulevard, Kyalami Office Park, Kyalami, Midrand, 1684 – Click for Map
PDF attachments to this email require Adobe Acrobat 7 or later in order to open them.
Please recirculate this critical email far & wide!
If you haven’t done so yet, visit http://bit.ly/vdAF30 to join the petition.
And I'd be scared of me too!
