There has been renewed commitment by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Anambra State Government on the need to partner towards enforcement of traffic rules and regulations in the state.
This follows the last ghastly tanker crashes that occurred in the state in which several lives were lost and valuable property damaged, and on the need to ensure safer road environment in the state.
This was disclosed after the Corps Marshal of FRSC, Bonoye Oyeyemi visited the Governor of Anamgra state in continuation of his special Sallah patrol monitoring organised by the FRSC to make the celebration crash and congestion-free.
The Corps Marshal who had earlier monitored traffic situations and visited some commands in crash and congestion prone areas of the Northwest zone of the country, took the patrol to the South East zone commencing from Enugu.
Briefing the Governor of the traffic situation in the state during the Sallah celebration, Corps Marshal Oyeyemi expressed satisfaction with level of compliance to traffic and regulations by motorists, saying that the situation had remained under control. “So far, I am satisfied with the traffic situation in all the places I have monitored. And from the reports I received from across the country, there is no cause for alarm,” he stated.
According to Oyeyemi, Anambra state has assumed central focus in the ongoing campaigns for tanker safety in the country, being the state where the first petroleum tanker crash with devastating result occurred in the year. He added that having made adequate consultations with the relevant stakeholders through various fora and initiated plans to avert future occurrence, there was the need to share experience with the Governor on the matter in order to ensure collective action.
He commended Governor Obiano for his support for road safety management in the state, stressing that the setting up of the State Traffic Management Agency by Anambra state government, provision of logistics to the FRSC in the state as well as construction and rehabilitation of roads are evidences of commitment to road safety, calling on him to sustain the initiatives being put in place by the FRSC towards addressing the challenges of tanker safety after the last crashes in the state.
After a careful review of the traffic situation in the state, the two leaders agreed on the need to join hands to ensure prompt removal of obstruction on any part of the roads in the state. They also frowned at the practice of illegally setting up markets along major road and junctions in the state, thereby constituting dangers to not only the people who operate in such markets, but the motorists.
In order to adequately tackle the chaotic traffic situation along Upper Iweka area situated within the Onitsha metropolis, it was further resolved that a special operational unit be set up in the area, while the general operational strategy of the FRSC in the state would change to strict enforcement of traffic rules. To this end, necessary measures would be put in place by both the FRSC and the state government to ensure prompt prosecution of violators to serve as deterrence to others.
As part of the resolutions, the Anambra state government restated its commitment to provision of road furniture on all its roads to ensure that they are fitted with adequate number of road signs and markings, to serve as guides to road users. Furthermore, both the FRSC and the Anambra state government agreed to work out modalities for streamlining the operations of Okafa motorcyclists in order to ensure that the operators abide by the rules of the road, especially on proper registration of their motorcycles as well as using the correct number plates and safety helmet.
The Amambra state Governor particularly restated the commitment of the state government to the success of the National Uniform Licensing Scheme (NULS) by ensuring that all the commitments expected from the state government to the scheme are promptly met, stressing that the use of fake licences must be eliminated from the state.
For effective implementation of the initiatives, it was restated that the FRSC and the Anambra state government should sustain regular collaboration on issues of traffic management to ensure diligence in their implementation.
The Corps Marshal was accompanied on the visit by some principal officers of the FRSC including the Commandant of the FRSC Academy Udi, Assistant Corps Marshal Keneth Nwaegbe and the sector commander of Anambra state, Corps Commander Sunday Ajayi among others.
