Law enforcement agencies in KwaZulu-Natal say the nationwide shortage of blood alcohol test kits is hindering them from conducting effective roadblocks this festive season. There is a shortage of vials in which the blood is stored, which are components of the test kit.
In a statement, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said that the KwaZulu-Natal Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) has 140 blood alcohol kits for use at alcohol enforcement roadblocks for the holiday period. RTI says they are forced to use alternative methods of testing for driving under the influence, which can be time consuming.
Every year the province experiences a high influx of holidaymakers during the festive season. Law enforcement agencies usually conduct roadblocks where hundreds of drivers are arrested for a number of charges, including driving under the influence of alcohol.
However, with the shortage of blood alcohol kits, law enforcement agencies say they are having a challenge in enforcing the law.
“We do have that challenge and as a result we can’t conduct our road blocks, we only relying on stop and search and taking those who are drunk and we still charge them and we take them to the doctors. We advise the public not to take advantage of this, we are still able to take you to the doctors,” eThewkini metro police spokesperson, Boyce Zungu explains.
The RTI in the province says they have no other option but to consider alternative ways to test those suspected of driving under the influence.
“The way we were trained we are able to observe drunk driver. At the moment we have arrested nine drivers to date. We are carrying on with our operations as usual in as much as we do have a shortage of instruments used when conducting drunken driving operations, there is a specific way or shall I say as the alternative whereby we take suspected drunk drivers for blood tests to a district surgeon,” says Zinhle Mngomezulu, the spokesperson of the Road Traffic Inspectorate.
Mngomezulu agrees that this process is time consuming compared to the rapid tests conducted during road blocks operations.
“Yes, it is indeed true, it is quite a process. However, we eventually get the result from the experts who draw the blood from the drunk driver,” Mngomezulu adds.
Meanwhile, law enforcement agencies have also urged motorists not to take advantage of the crisis as police visibility has been increased with 24-hour surveillance in hot spots.
