Police operations conducted on Wednesday night along major highways cross the country led to the arrest of 30 drivers who attempted to bribe traffic police officers.

Of the 30 drivers, nine were arrested along different roads within central region – Kigali and were paraded before the media at Kicukiro Police station yesterday, where they are currently held.

Other offenders include eight from the Eastern Region, two in the North, four in the South and six in the Western Region.

According to the Traffic Police Spokesperson, Chief Inspector of Police (CIP), Emmanuel Kabanda the operation was conducted in the framework of the ongoing Anti-Corruption Week that is running under the theme: "Fighting Corruption is an obligation for all.”

"We conduct such operations frequently and arrest drivers; we will not stop these operations until everyone understands the dangers of corruption. The arrested drivers have families that are now being affected by the arrests. Also, their businesses are halted because of such a reckless act,” said the spokesperson.

He added that the only way to avoid such effects is to always comply with the laws.

"Where an offence has been committed, adhere to what the law provides; if you are required to pay a fine, do so, fix the problem and move on with your businesses, rather than a shortcut that would eventually put you in serious troubles,” said CIP Kabanda.

He explained that corruption has diverse effects not only on individuals, but also to the country since it affects the economy and translates to a slow pace of development.

Article 640 of the penal code stipulates that any person who explicitly or implicitly offers, directly or indirectly proposes or promises a gift or any other illegal benefit, to a person in charge of a service, mission or mandate in order to render a service to him/her or somebody else,

shall be liable to a term of imprisonment of 2 years to 5 years and a fine of 2 to 10 times the value of the illegal benefit granted or promised upon conviction.

One driver expressed his regret for attempting to bribe police officer with Rwf2000.

In a related development, the same police operation that lasted for six hours also led to arrest of 12 drivers over drunk-driving.

CIP Kabanda said; "The public should take caution and be responsible even when they are enjoying. A drunk driver is a risk not only to their lives but to other road users and property. Therefore, responsibility is very crucial in ensuring road safety.”

He reiterated that Police’s goal is to create an accident-free environment which can be attained through contribution from every road user.

The same operation led to the impounding of 54 vehicles and 71 motorcycles that lacked proper documents, were driven by drunk drivers, or whose drivers attempted to bribe police officers.