The Governor of Ogun state, Senator Ibikunle Amosun has urged the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to remain resolute in its enforcement of traffic rules and regulations, saying that without strict enforcement of the law, people could continue to undermine the safety regulations with negative consequences.
Amosun gave the charge while receiving the Corps Marshal of FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi while on advocacy visit to the Government House, Abeokuta.
According to the Governor, effective management of traffic could be a herculean task if not backed up by stringent application of sanction to deter people from committing the offence, stating that he has personally decided to take the responsibility of monitoring the traffic with a view to ensuring that people were dissuaded from taking one way, especially whenever there was an event that attracted heavy vehicular traffic and road congestion.
The called on stakeholders to join hands in making the road safe and obstruction-free to enable people carry out their business and tourist activities without hindrance and under absolute safe condition. Amosun further stated that road congestion along the expressway in the state always happened whenever a programme was being hosted by any of the Churches located along the road.
“I have therefore taken it upon myself to always monitor the road whenever there were such programmes, to ensure that people were not allowed to violate the traffic rules and cause unnecessary hardships to other road users,” he further stated.
The Governor commended the FRSC for its efforts in traffic management and crash prevention, stressing that as a shared responsibility, the state government will continue to work with the FRSC to find lasting solutions to the challenges of traffic management in the state. He added that as a gateway state, Ogun state government is aware of the enormous challenges it faces in dealing with the high volume of people and goods that pass through it on daily basis, assuring that it is leaving no stone unturned in the efforts to rid the state of avoidable road crashes.
On the menace of tanker and trailer crashes, Amosun particularly commended the Corps Marshal for the various measures he has put n place to address the challenge, recalling that the National Summit on haulage operations and the various advocacy programmes organized to sensitise members of the public have gone a long way in creating enormous awareness among the populace. He restated the commitment of the Ogun state government to playing its own role in the road safety campaigns, pointing out that there is congruence between road safety and level of investment in an area, as according to him, investors would not be favorably disposed to coming to invest in an area that is prone to road crashes.
On the FRSC’s Road Side Clinic located at Sagamu, Governor Amosun assured that the state government will look into how best it could render support for it to continue to provide efficient services to crash victims before their transfer to hospital.
Earlier, the Corps Marshal in his remarks informed the Governor that he was in the state on the monitoring of the special truck and trailer operations launched in Lagos on Monday, and was at the Government House to rally the support of the state government towards the campaign.
According to him, Ogun state is strategic to the campaign as it falls within the states that share boundaries with Oyo and Lagos which have high volume of such vehicles. Oyeyemi further applauded Ogun state government for its sustained support to the FRSC, stressing that the Corps appreciates the partnership.
The Corps Marshal informed the Governor that aggressive enforcement has commenced on trailers and trucks, stating that with effective from 1st September, 2015, a special operation on tankers would equally be launched to ensure that the drivers abide by the minimum safety standards, especially the use of safety valves and retro reflective tapes on their vehicles.
Meanwhile, the Oyo state Governor has expressed its readiness to support the FRSC in its ongoing road safety campaigns. Speaking while receiving the Corps Marshal at the Government House Ibadan, the Deputy Governor, Otumba Moses Alakin Adedimu, commended the FRSC for its commitment to road safety campaigns as evidenced by its robust public enlightenment programmes and aggressive enforcement.
The Deputy Governor stressed that it is only when the roads are safe that people can be happy and confident to use for their various activities, adding that the state government will continue to cooperate with the FRSC in the task of ensuring safer road environment in the state.
“I assure you that Oyo state government supports what you are doing now and what you would be doing during the ember months special campaigns, to make the roads safer for all users during the yuletide season,” he stated.
Corps Marshal Oyeyemi in his remarks, briefed the Deputy Governor on “Operation Scorpion,” launched in Lagos with specific focus on drivers of trailers and trucks who violate traffic rules and regulations, stating that on the third day of the operation, 366 vehicles were apprehended and being tried at the Mobile Courts.
He commended Oyo state for being the pacesetter in road safety matters in the country, especially for its support for the National Uniform Licensing Scheme. Oyeyemi also called on the state government to consider the possibility of constructing modern tanker parks along specific areas in the state to prevent tanker drivers from indiscriminate parking which cause obstructions.
The Corps Marshal specially applauded the state government for embarking on road construction and rehabilitation as well as ensuring that road signs and markings were equally constructed on such roads to facilitate movement of traffic. He particularly commended the state government for the construction of the Ring Road, which resolved the perennial gridlock experienced along the Ibadan Municipality.
The Corps Marshal was accompanied on the visit by some principal officers of the FRSC, including the Deputy Corps Marshal in charge of Operations, Adei Abu, the Corps Legal Adviser, Assistant Corps Marshal Wole Olaniran and Zonal Commanding Officer, Zone 2 Lagos, Nseobong Charles Akapabio among others.