I extend my heartfelt greetings to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid on his completion of 10 years as Ruler of Dubai.
May Allah keep him in good health to rule Dubai for a long time.
M A Mannan, Dubai
Sheikh Mohammed is a great leader and visionary. I wish more people in my home country would follow his lead.
John Saf David, Dubai
How to make the roads safer
Regarding your article Keys to safer roads in UAE are 'time management, etiquette and seat-belt use' (January 4), time management will not stop someone from speeding. A lot of people always leave on time and they always speed. It's a habit and it can't be broken.
The only thing that will make the roads safer is if the police actually cracked down on all offences with harsher penalties and more presence.
For example, in Australia, if you don’t indicate when turning, you get a fine on the spot and three points on your licence.
If you speed, depending on how much over the speed limit, you get a fine and three points, or even lose your licence on the spot for one year. Ditto for speaking on a mobile phone while driving and throwing rubbish out of a car.
The issue in the UAE is that there are over 200 nationalities with their own driving habits. Let them loose on the roads and there is bound to be conflicting behaviour.
And why are people not penalised here like they are in every other country in the world? I have committed two offences in the eight years I have lived here but didn’t get any points. Adopt the point system and increase fines, and you will see people’s behaviour changing dramatically.
Introduce better driver training and education. Finally, make certain behaviour on the road socially unacceptable so people will feel like outcasts if they tail gate, or speed, or talk on mobile phones or not stop at pedestrian crossings.
John Paravalos, Dubai
Civil defence did an excellent job
Kudos to the civil defence of Dubai and the government for making the right decision to continue with the New Year’s Day celebrations (Dubai Ruler hails hotel fire crews, January 4). Such ability to overcome challenges is what makes Dubai and the UAE so special.
We live in a world filled with uncertainty and where accidents and incidents occur on a regular basis, resulting in some type of loss.
However, the mark of success is defined by our ability to recover from tragedy and in doing so we grow stronger and better.
Randall Mohammed, Dubai
I refer to the news report Dubai tourists staying in fire-damaged hotel had belongings held for safekeeping (January 4). Whenever someone tells me to "be careful over there", implying that it is unsafe, I just quote scenarios like this to them to shut them up. There is no way this story would have ended in a similar manner in the US. It is amazing how the crews worked together so diligently. Even Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed joined in to assist. This is what embodies this country.
Every day I feel safer here than I do in my own country, and every day it becomes a little harder to find reasons to go back “home”.
Guerra Eartha, Dubai
Let’s be more careful on road
As the new year begins, it’s time for many to adopt resolutions. However, most people forget about them even before the first month of the year ends.
This time, let’s not forget one thing – to avoid using mobile phones while driving and even while crossing the road.
I recently witnessed a dangerous situation in which a man paused in the middle of a busy road to take a selfie.
I hope the authorities continuously remind people about the need to use the mobile phone in a responsible manner.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
