FRSC Declares War on Underage Tanker, Truck Drivers

The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) has said that it is looking out for underage tanker and truck drivers to prevent accidents on the expressway.

The FRSC Sector Commander in Lagos State, Mr Hyginus Omeje, made this known on Wednesday at the Third Quarter overview of 2018 Corporate Strategic Goals and Projection at Sector Command, Ojodu Berger.

According to him, the legal limit for driving in the country is 18 years and above, but that somebody is looking small does not make him below 18 years.

“We are always watching out for underage tanker and truck drivers to prevent crashes on the road, especially on the expressway,” he said.

The FRSC official said that there were downward trends in the crashes involving tankers and articulated vehicles since 2016.

He said that the commission had intensified its patrol to prevent crashes in all the six geopolitical zones in the country.

“It was so serious, particularly in 2016 when we were recording tanker and truck crashes almost regularly, until the Corps Marshal, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi, flagged off the training and retraining programmes for tanker drivers.

“Since then, the corps has been sensitising them through various programmes to ensure that minimum standards are maintained on the roads,’’ he said.

The sector commander also advised tanker drivers to desist from giving their vehicles to motor boys to drive.

He said that such action could lead to crashes on the roads as some of them have no skills and experiences to drive such vehicles.

Omeje urged truck and tanker drivers to follow the rules and regulations of driving articulated vehicles by fixing their speed limit devices.

He also charged them to avoid alcohol intake and shun reckless driving for safety on the road.

Also speaking at the event, the FRSC Head of Public Education, Mr Bisi Kazeem, said that the commission was taking precautionary action following the June 28 tanker explosion at the Otedola Link Bridge on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Kazeem said: “We are charging them to start engaging their members in rigorous traffic training so as to meet minimum safety standards concerning their vehicles.

“It is very important to train and retrain them to enable them to follow the rules and regulations at the same time to meet the road standard concerning their vehicle.”

In his remarks, the National Chairman, NUPENG/PTD, Mr Salmon Oladiti, on behalf of his members, commiserated with the families of those who lost their lives in the fire incident.

Oladiti described the incident as “an unfortunate occurrence’’, saying that members of the NUPENG/PTD have been avoiding such calamities.

According to him, the union has been collaborating with the FRSC and other law enforcement agencies in observing minimum safety standards on the highways.

“All efforts will be put in place to ensure that this kind of disaster does not recur on our roads,” he said.(NAN)