Taxi drivers at hospital complain of harassment
Driving a taxi in Belize is not exactly what you’d call a dream profession. The cost of fuel is high, the roads often punishing and the threat of crime is ever present. But acquiring a green license plate always remains a last resort for out of work Belizeans and that means the competition for fares will always remain high. So high that some drivers don’t mind breaking the law to make ends meet.
Janelle Chanona, Reporting
For more than two years, Wayne Ford, has worked as a taxi man in front of the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital’s main driveway. But according to Ford, this week, traffic officials have told him he can no longer park in the area.
Wayne Ford, Taxidriver
“Yesterday, a traffic officer come with a police tell me, I can’t park yah (here). So I tell ah (him) like this, why I can’t park yah. I show ah the sign them because I tell ah I could read and I could write and I see the see deh (there) “no parking anytime”, so I no stupid enough fi go park deh. I no what park deh, I park over yah, over deh, and see my car right deh, ih (it) park right deh.”
Okay, so “right there” isn’t flagged a no parking area, but it is in front of several parking slots for Social Security customers. And while they’ve carefully selected other spots to ply their trade, by parking there, they are also breaking the law.
Wayne Ford
“According to what I understand from one of the traffic man, you have to stay thirty feet from the lane. So he nevah (didn’t) park his car thirty feet from the lane, so I suppose that’s the reason why he get a ticket.”
Janelle Chanona
“But the way how this deh, you can’t really park here because thirty feet from there to here is not thirty feet.”
Wayne Ford
“That’s why I se…well yah (here) so, we no really have a problem with yah, but up ahead deh and over deh.”
Janelle Chanona
“But isn’t there a fire hydrant there?”
Wayne Ford
“Yeah, over deh have a hydrant, but like I seh (said), man di park yah fi (for) years and they nevah had a problem with it.”
Janelle Chanona
Isn’t there a safety aspect, like if emergency vehicles need to come and use the hydrant…”
Wayne Ford
“Well I agree with that because I no really know weh fi seh (what to say) bout that, but if a hydrant deh, deh then you should respect that in case of an emergency. So I noh really know bout that, but dah (it’s) over this side I park, so I wah deal with over this side yah.”
Janelle Chanona
“The way how this place gets so crowded especially with the school next door, isn’t it a problem with traffic? That no help to the congestion?”
Wayne Ford
“No, no, no, that dah no kind of problem, no kind of problem. I tell you, I deh out yah three years and I nevah had a problem, and we still have problem with the traffic.”
But the traffic police do have a problem with the taxi drivers and several of the cabbies have been issued tickets for violations. The men claim they have no where else to go. But just a few yards away, the Hospital Taxi Union has plenty of available space.
Janelle Chanona
“Why don’t you all join the union?”
Wayne Ford
“The man deh no want we in deh (there). They seh (say) they no want we in deh. They only have bout five or six or seven car. I no ask them, but one ah they guys ask if he could go in deh and join. They seh they no want nobody in deh.”
With officials cracking down on traffic violations in the city, and this area being an area where it is important to maintain the free flow of traffic, it is inevitable more tickets will be issued. But these men say they will continue to knowingly break the law by parking here.
Wayne Ford
“I just want they just left me weh I deh and mek (let) I mek (make) my honest living. Because I noh di rob and I noh di kill and and noh di thief nobody. I deh out yah everyday and I di work honestly I just want they just leave me alone.”
Reporting for News 5, I am Janelle Chanona.
According to one traffic officer, who did not wish to be named, on many occasion the wardens turn a blind eye to the illegal parking as the hassle involved in writing a ticket just isn’t worth it.
