Dangote Cement Graduates 50 ‘Special’ Truck Drivers, 10 Females

Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja

Dangote Articulated Truck Driving School (DATDS) has graduated no fewer than 50 special truck drivers.

This was contained in a statement that was signed by the Spokesman of the Dangote Group, Mr. Anthony Chiejina, in Lokoja yesterday.

The statement explained that 10 of the drivers were women who were trained on defensive driving for three months.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the Divisional Director of the Dangote Cement Plc’s Transport Section, Obajana Plant, Kogi State, Mr. Ajay Singh, said that the driving school was aimed at taming the tide of auto crash in Nigeria.

He said the company has a zero tolerance for auto crash, which informed the setting up of different programmes, in collaboration with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).

The Head of Human Resources, Mr. Azeez Adeniyi, said that the DATDS is unique as the first of its kind in the history of Nigeria.

Adeniyi urged the graduates to maximise the advantages from the training, adding that it was a rare and golden opportunity to have passed through the school.

The Manager of DATDS, Mr. Daniel Marcus Akuso, said some of the courses offered for the Batch ‘A’ included Civic Education, English, Mathematics, Defensive Driving, Truck Handling, Maintenance Technology, DCT Administration Procedures, Root Cause Analysis, Health and Science, Road Signs and Codes.

Akuso said that the graduates would undertake a six-month attachment to enable them to acquire practical experience.

Speaking, the Deputy Road Commandant, (OC Instructor) of the FRSC attached to Dangote’s driving school, Mr. Mukhtar Umar, said that his agency played a significant role in the training and certification of the drivers.

Umar said: “We teach them defensive driving, road signs, responsibilities of the driver, driving culture, and then certify them. These are Special Drivers.”  

The Representative of Fantique Driving Centre, South Africa, Mr. Jacques Van Heerden, said that some causes of road accidents, if not all, are actually avoidable.