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Stemming the carnage on our roads
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It can, therefore, be said without fear of contradiction that no single day passes without such incidents, most of them fatal with high casualty figures.
Everyday, the mass media is replete with stories of road accidents in various parts of the country the causes of which are similar and yet avoidable.
It is no longer news that Nigerian roads are bad. Some of the drivers that ply these roads are equally bad. Presently, it is claimed that there are about 10 million drivers in the country who were neither subjected to driving test nor possess drivers’ licence. Driving as a vocation used to be noble, while passing the test was highly celebrated and those who actually passed the test were held in high esteem. Today, the story is different as all manner of people find their way to the steering, some without any training at all. This class of drivers not only constitute nuisance but also safety risks on the road.
Lagos State presents a good case of bad, impatient bad driving. This can be explained by the fact that the system, whether political or social, is not just functioning. Values have collapsed and decorum has been thrown to the dogs.
The larger society called Nigeria is a place where traffic rules are broken at will because fines for breaking traffic laws are very high and often do not make sense.
The way the roads are constructed, such that a two kilometre journey is made to last about 30 minutes, makes it difficult to obey traffic laws. Again, why should a traffic offence committed in Festac Town, for instance, be settled in Ikeja? The economic consideration is that you will lose the use of your car, waste your time, pay N50, 000 and undergo a psychiatric test. This encourages corruption because most motorists would choose instead to apologise to the officer and give something instead of going through the harrowing experience of a psychiatric test. Penalties are currently not commensurate with offences, and the government, police officers, and motorists know this.
It is common sight, in Lagos State for instance, to see motorists driving against traffic in broad day light.
Again, it is very common to see the notorious and ubiquitous ‘Kombi’ bus drivers popularly called Danfo drivers stopping at the centre of the road to either pick or discharge passengers, or even overtake from both sides of the road. And to cap it all, most of these vehicles are not roadworthy.
All sorts of vehicles at different degrees of disrepair dot the nation's roads. On the highways are the moving mayhem called trailers and tankers many of which have faulty brake systems, worn-out tyres and loosely hanging bodies which make the roads unsafe.
We are pained seeing all these happen, especially when they are avoidable .We are all the more pained because there are traffic rules to take care of the situation, but these rules have been laid prostrate by corruption.
The economics of corruption makes it easier for the police officers who are supposed to enforce these laws to turn blind eyes to traffic offenders. The police officer who is on duty on the road to enforce traffic rules and ensure sanity there sees what is supposed to be a call to duty as an opportunity to line his pocket.
This, to us, is worrisome because apart from creating the ugly scenes we witness everyday on our roads, it amounts to economic sabotage. In Lagos State, for instance, the penalty for driving against traffic is N25, 000 and a psychiatric test in the hospital. Why a psychiatric test?
Rather than enforce the payment of this penalty, defaulters are asked to 'settle' with amounts as low as N5, 000 or even N3, 000 and get away with their offence.
We cannot afford to continue like this because the price we pay and will continue to pay for all these is loss of valuable manhour and manpower. All the agencies including the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) should sit up and do the work for which they are established. The roads should be clearly marked with the traffic signs, and lights made functional.
It is our opinion that punishment for traffic offences should be commensurate with the offence committed such that corrupt law enforcement agencies should not take advantage of the lapses to short-change the state. We believe that if the penalty is conveniently payable and those in charge are conscientious and honest enough to enforce the payment, given the recklessness of our drivers, this will form a huge index in the state's internally generated revenue. On its own part, government should perform its statutory duty of constructing new roads and/or maintaining the existing ones.
Everyday, the mass media is replete with stories of road accidents in various parts of the country the causes of which are similar and yet avoidable.
It is no longer news that Nigerian roads are bad. Some of the drivers that ply these roads are equally bad. Presently, it is claimed that there are about 10 million drivers in the country who were neither subjected to driving test nor possess drivers’ licence. Driving as a vocation used to be noble, while passing the test was highly celebrated and those who actually passed the test were held in high esteem. Today, the story is different as all manner of people find their way to the steering, some without any training at all. This class of drivers not only constitute nuisance but also safety risks on the road.
Lagos State presents a good case of bad, impatient bad driving. This can be explained by the fact that the system, whether political or social, is not just functioning. Values have collapsed and decorum has been thrown to the dogs.
The larger society called Nigeria is a place where traffic rules are broken at will because fines for breaking traffic laws are very high and often do not make sense.
The way the roads are constructed, such that a two kilometre journey is made to last about 30 minutes, makes it difficult to obey traffic laws. Again, why should a traffic offence committed in Festac Town, for instance, be settled in Ikeja? The economic consideration is that you will lose the use of your car, waste your time, pay N50, 000 and undergo a psychiatric test. This encourages corruption because most motorists would choose instead to apologise to the officer and give something instead of going through the harrowing experience of a psychiatric test. Penalties are currently not commensurate with offences, and the government, police officers, and motorists know this.
It is common sight, in Lagos State for instance, to see motorists driving against traffic in broad day light.
Again, it is very common to see the notorious and ubiquitous ‘Kombi’ bus drivers popularly called Danfo drivers stopping at the centre of the road to either pick or discharge passengers, or even overtake from both sides of the road. And to cap it all, most of these vehicles are not roadworthy.
All sorts of vehicles at different degrees of disrepair dot the nation's roads. On the highways are the moving mayhem called trailers and tankers many of which have faulty brake systems, worn-out tyres and loosely hanging bodies which make the roads unsafe.
We are pained seeing all these happen, especially when they are avoidable .We are all the more pained because there are traffic rules to take care of the situation, but these rules have been laid prostrate by corruption.
The economics of corruption makes it easier for the police officers who are supposed to enforce these laws to turn blind eyes to traffic offenders. The police officer who is on duty on the road to enforce traffic rules and ensure sanity there sees what is supposed to be a call to duty as an opportunity to line his pocket.
This, to us, is worrisome because apart from creating the ugly scenes we witness everyday on our roads, it amounts to economic sabotage. In Lagos State, for instance, the penalty for driving against traffic is N25, 000 and a psychiatric test in the hospital. Why a psychiatric test?
Rather than enforce the payment of this penalty, defaulters are asked to 'settle' with amounts as low as N5, 000 or even N3, 000 and get away with their offence.
We cannot afford to continue like this because the price we pay and will continue to pay for all these is loss of valuable manhour and manpower. All the agencies including the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) should sit up and do the work for which they are established. The roads should be clearly marked with the traffic signs, and lights made functional.
It is our opinion that punishment for traffic offences should be commensurate with the offence committed such that corrupt law enforcement agencies should not take advantage of the lapses to short-change the state. We believe that if the penalty is conveniently payable and those in charge are conscientious and honest enough to enforce the payment, given the recklessness of our drivers, this will form a huge index in the state's internally generated revenue. On its own part, government should perform its statutory duty of constructing new roads and/or maintaining the existing ones.
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