The former Member of Parliament for Ayensuano, Samuel Ayeh-Paye, has emphasized the necessity for a comprehensive investigation into the recent train accident, asserting that merely sentencing the driver involved is insufficient for closure.
He underscored the importance of accountability from various stakeholders, including the railway development authority and the Ghana Railway Company Limited. His remarks follow the involvement of a newly imported train in an accident during a test run on the Tema-Makapadan railway line.
While the driver of the truck involved has been sentenced to six months in prison by the Juapong District Court, Ayeh-Paye believes that the investigation should not conclude with the driver’s sentencing. He insists that all relevant stakeholders in the railway sector must provide answers regarding the incident.
“Sentencing the driver to 6 months in prison shouldn’t end there. There must be a proper investigation to find out what happened. There are other stakeholders; the railway development authority, who have some questions to answer because they are the regulatory body.
“We have the Ghana Railway Company Limited as well on why they were not able to do proper surveillance. There’s an obstacle on the lines before the train was moved on the line we have to find out, that is the first question…So, for me, I think we shouldn’t end there. Nobody should sit to say that once the driver has been sentenced, it ends it.
“Also, if you look at the pictures we’ve seen so far, you ask yourself, it looks as if somebody just picked the truck and dumped it in the middle of the track. Because you can see weeds behind it and in front of it, so when it came people were saying that it was photoshopped…you see how it was positioned, the middle [part] of the truck was positioned on the line. So, for me, we should not end it here. We must do a proper investigation,” he said.
