The Federal Road Safety Corps is to investigate and prosecute both the owners and drivers of the four articulated vehicles involved in a multiple crash along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Sunday.
The FRSC Corps Marshals, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, disclosed this in a statement signed by the Corps Public Education Officer, Bisi Kazeem, on Monday in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that three tankers and one trailer were engulfed in an explosion on Kara Bridge along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
Oyeyemi, who decried the attendant loss of lives and damages to properties resulting from such avoidable crashes, expressed concern over the ugly incident.
He noted that irrespective of the series of engagements with the various Unions of tankers and trailers, as well as major stakeholders in the road transport sector, the country still experienced such ugly trends on the roads.
This, he said, was due to undue violation of maximum safety standards by both drivers and owners of these vehicles.
According to him, the Corps has put in place more efforts to eradicate incidents of crashes on the road apart from several engagements with the Unions and stakeholders.
He said the Corps had also engaged drivers of Dangote Group during its 2019 annual drivers retreat.
He added: “I single handedly delivered series of lectures on basic road safety ideals and the imperatives of maintaining maximum safety standards at all times.
“I want to emphatically state that the situation is utterly unacceptable and must be brought to an end.”
The Corps Marshal directed the Safety Engineering Unit of the Corps to commence thorough investigation into the crash.
He added that the Corps Legal Adviser should also activate immediate prosecution of both the vehicle owners and the drivers to serve as deterrent to others.
He said: “You may recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had in 2019 set up a Presidential Task Force on haulage operation in Nigeria headed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha.
“This committee was set up to look into issues affecting safe haulage operation in the country.
“The task force has activated proceedings and several effective and efficient management plans for haulage have been carried out to eradicate crashes involving articulated vehicles in the country.”
