The Corps
Marsha of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Boboye Oyeyemi and Dangote
Industries Limited have agreed on the roadmap for ensuring road traffic crashes
involving the company’s vehicles, with the call on the company to immediately
commence removal of all its broken down vehicles on the highways across the
country while ensuring faithful implementation of the resolutions reached at
the interactive session.
Speaking at the end of the meeting with members of
the Management of the company, the Corps Marshal reiterated that government
will be more vigilant in monitoring the activities of the drivers of the company
to determine its compliance with the safety roadmap drawn, saying the meeting
was called to brainstorm on the increasing rate of road traffic crashes
involving the company’s vehicles.
According to Bisi Kazeem Head, Media Relations and
Strategy, FRSC, in a press release, Oyeyemi said the FRSC has observed
that Dangote Group operates one of the largest number of fleet of articulated
vehicles in the country, pointing out that the activities of its drivers have
become a source of concern to other road users, and efforts must be made to
ensure that they are brought under strict control to avoid the menace the cause
on the road. He maintains that since road remains the most favourable means of
transportation in the country, necessary measures must be put in place to
protect the users, noting that FRSC is particularly concerned with the level of
impunity being displayed by some drivers of Dangote Industries Limited who
operate without due consideration to lives of other road users.
He indicated that many lives have been lost in
several road traffic crashes they caused, while the nation equally suffers
unquantifiable volume of economic losses from the crashes. “A situation where
the drivers of the company would knock down a road user, abandon the vehicle
and disappear into the thin air is unacceptable to the FRSC,” he said.
Expressing anger at such high a level of impunity,
Oyeyemi noted that even FRSC personnel who go on patrol and rescue operations
are not excepted from the ugly practice of the company’s drivers, warning
however, that as the lead agency for road safety management and administration
in the country, FRSC will do all it can to put a stop to such carelessness.
“This meeting is therefore, called to address the matter and for all stakeholders
to discuss on the way forward,” he stated.
The Corps Marshal who also frowned at the way some
of the drivers of the company indulge in overloading, urged its Management to
put in place necessary measures that could ensure that the ECOWAS protocol on axle
load is not violated. He added that as the company with large number of fleet
of vehicles, it should show good example to others by using reflective tapes on
its vehicles to give them adequate illumination especially in the night.
In his remarks, the Special Assistant to the
Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, Alhaji Abdulrahman Yakassai while
expressing appreciation of the Chairman of Dangote Group to the FRSC for its
commitment to road safety campaigns, apologised for his inability to personally
attend the meeting. He noted that the company is as concerned with issues of
road safety as the FRSC, stressing that in tackling the increasing rate of road
traffic crashes involving its vehicles, Management of the company has taken
various measures including training and retraining of the drivers and
implementation of other safety measures drawn up by the team of experts on road
safety.
Also contributing, the Director of Logistics of the
company disclosed that Management has identified maintenance as one of the
major causes of frequent breakdown of its vehicles, noting that whenever the
drivers were faced with technical challenges, they normally resort to fixing up
the issues by themselves, thereby tempering with some elements of the vehicles
that aggravate the matter. He enumerated a number of actions being taken by
Management of the company to include establishment of inspection team that
would ensure prompt repair of broken down vehicles and incentives for
crash-free drivers.
Among other resolutions reached at the meeting held
at the FRSC National Headquarters Abuja were collaborative arrangement with the
FRSC to remove broken down/crash Dangote vehicles from the roads nationwide and
comprehensive compliance to the use of approved retro-reflective tapes on
Dangote vehicles in conformity with ECOWAS safety requirement.
“Dangote Group to sustain the current one hour
refresher course and reward for drivers to sustain commitment to progressive
reform on their general disposition,” the resolution stated.
The meeting further urged Dangote Group to embarks
on the installation of Mobile Weigh bridges at all its premises across the
country to ensure compliance with ECOWAS loading regulations. “Dangote Group to
expedite action on the control centres being established across the country to
reduce careless driving,” it further stated.
The resolutions also urged Dangote Group to
establish and operate a standard driving school for its truck and trailer
drivers, while calling on the FRSC to encourage regular interactions between
Commanding Officers and Dangote offices located within their jurisdiction for
increased synergy and prompt resolution of some of the road safety matters to
avoid further crashes.
Also in attendance at the meeting were
representatives of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; the
National Security Adviser and Department of State Services
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