BULAWAYO will host the annual National Driver of the Year competition on a date to be announced with the winner representing the country at the international event set for Poland later in the year.
JUNIOR MOYO OWN CORRESPONDENT
The of the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe (TSCZ) operations, research and marketing director Proctor Utete said Bulawayo had been chosen to host the national competition because the city had the best grounds in the country.
“We have chosen Bulawayo because it has one of the best grounds in the country,” he said.
“The surface is smooth allowing for the best results. The Bulawayo community is also very supportive of traffic safety issues.”
Utete was speaking at the award ceremony of the Matabeleland driver of the year competition in Bulawayo on Sunday that saw nine drivers advancing to the national finals.
Chengetai Vhavha of Delta Beverages scooped the first prize in the articulate trucks category and walked away with $600 and a shield.
He was followed by his Delta colleague Tuesday Sibanda who got $400 while Shepherd Maliwa from Swift was third and got $200 for his efforts.
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In the rigid truck category, Ocean Moyo from the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) was top followed by Fanuel Mutipirwa from the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) and Lovemore Dokora from Delta.
The bus category was won by Tsistsi Khosa from the ZNA with fellow soldier Elias Ncube second and Zupco’s Siapi Leonce taking third place. Utete said the competition was aimed at boosting traffic safety skills among drivers to protect passengers, other motorists and the public at large.
“The driver of the year competition promotes safety among the drivers by improving skills, knowledge and attitude,” he said.
“There is so much interaction between drivers during the exercise leading to sharing of ideas, encouragement and adherence of rules and regulations and thus building quality and trust among drivers.”
Utete said drivers who had not won anything did not leave empty-handed as they acquired more knowledge on road safety that they would share with others.
Although the competition was open to anyone with a Class 1 or Class 2 driver’s licence, the TSCZ settled for company drivers as they were easier to co-ordinate than unattached individuals.
