The National body of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Association, an arm of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, has urged Federal Government to urgently rehabilitate roads.
Akanni Oladiti, National Chairman of PTDA, made the appeal at a training of 2,500 tanker drivers organised by the group in Lagos.
Oladiti, represented by Olujide Kilanko, Chairman of the Training Committee, said that the objective was to reduce road accidents involving tankers on the roads to the barest minimum.
“I appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to fix Nigeria roads. They are in deplorable conditions and need urgent attention, now that the rainy season is gradually coming to an end,” he said.
Oladiti said that the recurring cases of accidents caused by tanker drivers across the country had forced the union to embark on the training in the last six years.
He lauded the Federal Road Safety Corps Marshal and other traffic regulating agencies for their supports and collaborations at all times during the training.
According to him, the training has helped to reduce the number of accidents involving tankers on the Nigerian roads and needs to be sustained.
Also, Tayo Aboyeji, Chairman, Lagos Chapter of NUPENG, said that the training was to reduce the rate of accidents on the roads and also educate tanker drivers on the safety tips.
Aboyeji said bad roads contributed to accidents that occurred on the roads, adding that a journey of two to three days to deliver a product, usually takes five days now, due to the deplorable state of the roads.
He, however, said that the union was managing the situation not to affect the distribution of products to final destination in spite of the bad roads.
“As at today, there is no gridlock in Apapa. The committee set up by the Federal Government, in collaboration with NUPENG, has done a great job in addressing the problem in that area.
“Another major problem is park for the trucks. The Orile Truck Park has been reduced by the rail construction and we do not have any place to park.
“We appeal to the Lagos State Government to assist in that direction. We only use the private truck park in Ogere in Ogun, but it is not enough to contain all our trucks,” he said.
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