Chief traffic cop unaware of Vaz's red light video
Published:Monday | July 3, 2023 | 11:29 PMAndre Williams/Staff Reporter -
The Jamaica Constabulary Force's (JCF) most authoritative figure on traffic violations, head of the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch (PSTEB), Assistant Commissioner of Police Gary McKenzie, up to yesterday afternoon said he was unaware of the viral discussion around a video of Transport Minister Daryl Vaz appearing to run a red light.
Contacted by The Gleaner, McKenzie said he was unable to say whether a probe would be launched into the matter.
“I am not aware of the fact because I am not on the ground right now. You catch me roaming,” the PSTEB head said some time after the freshly minted transport minister had already commented on the video that has been in the public domain and making the rounds on social media since Saturday.
The police have regularly requested videos from motorists who catch other motorists breaking the law, with several of those videos assisting the police in making arrests or finding suspects.
When told that Vaz had released a statement Monday on social media, McKenzie said he could not speak to it.
“I can’t comment on it because I have no clue as to what you are speaking about right now,” he said, reiterating that he was “not on the ground”.
Vaz was handed the transport ministry in May but, while rebuffing claims that he broke the law, the minister said the incident took place before his appointment.
In a thread on Twitter, Vaz sought to shed some light on the matter.
He admitted to being the person in the video, but did not share where the incident took place.
“Months ago, I stopped at a red light at an intersection. I quickly realised that the light was malfunctioning, as it quickly turned to green and then yellow and back to red in a matter of seconds and kept repeating that sequence,” he said.
“On realising that the light kept malfunctioning, I proceeded through the lights after making certain the intersection was clear and signalling the vehicle ahead of me."
The minister said he immediately contacted the head of the National Works Agency (NWA) traffic management division.
“He subsequently confirmed there was an issue and that it would be resolved in short order,” Vaz tweeted.
19 second clip
The clip is 19 seconds in length, leading Vaz to question why a longer version was not released.
“This happened many months ago, but I notice it has now been made an issue since becoming minister of transport on 24th of May. Please note that the video clip ends before I had even crossed the intersection which would have shown the lights changing again,” Vaz said.
The video went into circulation on the heels of Vaz making a pronouncement on road users in Jamaica during a recent function.
Vaz had said: “The culture of lawlessness, recklessness and lack of care for the safety of passengers must stop and I will see to that as one of the mandates as minister.”
It appears to have been a female motorist who recorded Vaz hopping out of and into a white SUV on a main road.
“Can y’all tell me why Daryl Vaz stop in front of me (laughing)… and bruck the stop light. Mr Government, sir!” the voice on the video is heard saying.
In the footage, the lights can bee seen changing from yellow to red in a three-second span before it ended.
There was also another vehicle which appeared to be approaching the intersection at the same time.
The distinct voice of broadcaster Dahlia Harris can also be heard coming from the radio in the video.
Harris, broadcasting on RJR94 FM, is heard saying happy birthday to another broadcaster, Dionne Jackson Miller.
A social media user pointed out that Jackson Miller's birthday is in June.
In the meantime, Vaz immediate predecessor as transport minister, Audley Shaw, was charged over the weekend with careless driving on the Four Paths main road.
The former minister will either pay a fine of $25,000 or face the May Pen Traffic Court for his role in a minor collision.
The driver of the other vehicle sustained injuries.
Reports are that Shaw was driving his motor vehicle on Friday, heading towards Denbigh, when it collided with another motorist travelling in the opposite direction.