Over 5 000 Oshana drivers slapped with arrest warrants

The police in the Oshana region issued more than 5 000 warrants of arrest to drivers with outstanding traffic fines last week.

Oshana police spokesperson Thomas Aiyambo told The Namibian that unexecuted warrants of arrest against dodgy drivers have increased in the region.

“Many of the outstanding warrants of arrest are public transport operators who keep on disobeying traffic rules on the roads. Motorists with outstanding warrants of arrest can settle a fine if they have received the infringement notice.

“We are appealing to them to approach our traffic department and settle their outstanding fines,” he says.

He says most fines were for speeding on the road, driving without valid driving licences, operating unroadworthy vehicles and failing to comply with road signs.

Aiyambo expressed concern about the high number of unpaid fines, adding that the police in the region have begun looking for these offenders at police roadblocks, with the warrants of arrest issued against them by the Oshakati Magistrate’s Court.

“Alternatively, they have the option to go to court on a specified date in the infringement notice to state their case. Failure to do so results in a summons being issued and continued non-compliance sees a warrant of arrest being generated for contempt of court,” Aiyambo says.