Driving without a licence is an offence that cannot be reconciled but provides for the transfer of the case to the prosecution and then to the competent court for proper legal proceedings.
Senior officials of the General Directorate of Traffic told a seminar titled "driving without a licence, risks, and solutions" that there was the need to raise awareness about the dangers of driving without a licence, "especially among young people who are victims of reckless driving".
Director General of Traffic Brigadier Mohamed Saad al-Kharji said Qatar Traffic Law of 2007 stated in Article No. 29 that no mechanical vehicle may be driven on the road without obtaining a proper licence from the licensing authority.
He said the law also stipulated that the minimum age for obtaining a driving licence was 18 years.
Director of Traffic Awareness Department at the General Directorate of Traffic Lt Col. Mohamed Radhi al-Hajri stressed the Ministry of Interior's keenness to limit the cases of driving without a licence and to reduce traffic accidents resulting from such behaviour through strict application of the law and spreading awareness among youth aged 12 to 17, as well as educating families about the risk of allowing their children to drive before reaching legal age.
Head of Traffic Studies Department at Traffic Department First Lieutenant Abdulrahman Mohamed al-Aawi presented a number of solutions to reduce this phenomenon, including activating the concept of community partnership and intensifying traffic awareness for families in cooperation with schools.
The seminar dealt with a number of themes, including the effects of accidents resulting from driving without a licence and the cost of treating accident injuries, the efforts of the Ministry of Interior to confront this problem, and the role of community partnership in reducing them.
Dr. Aisha Obaid, Assistant Director for Injury Prevention Programme at HMC's Injury and Accident Centre said young people are mostly the victims of traffic accidents as a result of speeding. She called on drivers of all ages to wear the seat belt, which reduces the severity of injuries by 70 to 90%.
Lieutenant Hamd Salih al-Ghadeed of the Department of Investigation at the General Directorate of Traffic, spoke about the legal proceedings against those who drive without a licence.
The seminar witnessed discussions on the role of the Ministry of Interior in promoting awareness programmes on the dangers of driving without a licence, as well as the role of schools, mosques, and families in this regard.
