Musyoki Kimanthi
Q: Is it mandatory to carry driving licence all the time when I am driving? The other day a traffic policeman jumped into my car and ordered me to drive to a police station because I did not have the document. I was let off only when my wife turned up with the licence two hours later.
A:I have heard some motorists, once stopped by the police remonstrating angrily that they would not be driving such expensive cars if they did not have a driving licence.
But even before looking at what the law says, it is important to understand why the police would require that motorists carry driving licences. Imagine the thousands of people, whether licensed or not, who drive all sorts of automobiles and the risk they pose to other motorists and pedestrians.
A driving licence is a proof that the holder of the document has gone through the required tests and education requirement and has some driving aptitude.
If there was no requirement for driving licences, our roads would be worse than war zones. It should never be enough to state that given the dishonest nature of our society, many would pretend to have one when they don’t.
Legal Requirement
The requirement that motorists carry the document is the only way to help save resources that would otherwise be wasted in making follow-ups, not to mention the lost man-hours.
Section 30 of the Traffic Act states that no person shall drive a motor vehicle of any class unless he is the holder of a valid driving licence or a provisional licence endorsed in respect of that vehicle. Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with this law is guilty and liable, on a first conviction, to a fine not exceeding Sh2,000 or to imprisonment not exceeding three months. On each subsequent conviction, one can be fined Sh5,000 or six months imprisonment or both.
But it is one thing to be a holder of valid driving licence, and another to carry it. Section 36 of the Traffic Act states that any person driving a motor vehicle shall carry his driving licence or provisional licence and is required to produce it for examination by a police officer. Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding Sh100.
Perhaps what brings confusion is subsection 2 of Section 36. It states that ‘for the purposes of this section, ‘driving licence or provisional licence’ includes such other evidence as will satisfy the police that there is no contravention of section 30’. It is, therefore, not sufficient for a motorist to argue that because he drives a huge car he must be a holder of a valid driving licence.
Possible Charges
Many European countries and Canada require drivers to produce their licence on demand. In the UK, it is not necessary for drivers to carry driving licence. However, if stopped, a driver may be required to produce their licence at a nominated police station within seven days. The police issue a form for this purpose, colloquially known as ‘seven-day wonder’ or a ‘producer’.
A motorist needs to be extremely arrogant or the police extremely malicious for a charge of not carrying a licence to be preferred. There are so many ways of proving a licence exists without resort to the courts. In practice, the police more often than not craft two charges, one under section 30 and the other under Section 36.
Carrying the valid licence to court merely helps to prove the motorist was indeed a holder of a valid licence. He still has to mitigate as to why he did not have it at the time.
