NTSA director general Francis Meja. He is in a bitter war with morticians over a proposal. [Photo: The Star]
National Transport and Safety Authority proposal to have those found guilty of drunk driving work as mortuary attendants as punishment, has been condemned badly by morticians.This is after it emerged that NTSA is in the process of formulating a policy that will see drunk drivers work in mortuaries.Chairman of the National Funeral Services Association of Kenya Ezra Olack on Tuesday rubbished the proposal asking NTSA to respect their profession."Stop demeaning our profession. The work we do is very important. We have a code of ethics and code of conduct that all our staff have to abide by," Olack told the Star in a phone interview.He added: "We are not going to allow people to come and ruin our profession. I'm sure that the person who made the proposal was joking," Olack said.Olack asked the road safety body to instead consider increasing the penalties as opposed to subjecting drivers to serving as morgue attendants against their will, reports the Star.He said drivers can sue NTSA for being forced to work in mortuaries."People think that mortuary attendants are society rejects and drug addicts. They don't know that we also go to school and learn how to take care of dead bodies," Olack further told the paper.Morticians receive bodies in funeral homes, preserve and prepare them for burial or cremation.Under the current Traffic Act, drunk drivers are often charged a fine of between Sh20,000-Sh30,000.