The Assistant Corps Marshall, Federal Road Safety Commission, Alhaji Garba, has recommended strict penalty for any driver who kills a passenger through motor accident arising from reckless driving.
He said that such a person should be made to pay dearly to the family of the victim and be barred from driving. A statement on Monday, quoted Garba as saying this at Truck Safety on Our Roads workshop in Lagos.
“It is only in Nigeria that someone will drive a vehicle, kill 18 people and drive again the following day”, he said.
Garba stated that contrary to public belief, reckless driving and not poor roads accounted for the high rate of accident on the road.
He advised the owners of trucks not to think of maximising profits always, urging them to think of road safety by maintaining their vehicles.
He urged policemen, road marshals, vehicle inspection officers and other road workers not to compromise their stance on enforcing road laws, saying that any erring driver should be made to pay a fine or face the law accordingly.
Garba also cautioned against sitting babies in front of the car saying, “To sit a baby in front of a vehicle while driving is dangerous.”
The Special Adviser to Lagos State Government on Transportation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa, who represented Governor Babatunde Fashola as Guest Speaker at the event, said the problems on Nigerian roads were caused by long years of military rule. He said the problem started when government began to distribute motorbikes and even trucks to those who had no need for them, but who later converted them for commercial purposes.
He said the failure of railway system opened ways for individual commercialists who saw transporting fuel tankers to long distances as good business. Opeifa added that tankers were supposed to move fuels from nearby depots and distribute them to petrol stations within the city or town.
A certified safety professional, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Alex Opene, said there were five simple steps motorists could take to stay alive, including wearing of seatbelt, avoid driving under the influence of alcohol or drug and avoid driving when tired. He also said that road safety had become human rights issues that should be taken seriously by all concerned.
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