National Telescope national telescope newspaper
Federal Road Safety Corps Marshal Dauda Biu has proposed implementing jail sentences for drivers accountable for road accidents.
Biu addressed the press in Abuja, urging all state governments to enforce strict penalties on drivers responsible for recent crashes in Oyo, Kano, and Kaduna States.
These incidents, including crashes at Gaya Junction in Kano and Tashan Yari in Kaduna, resulted in 18 fatalities on April 18 and 19, 2024.
Another crash on the Oyo-Ogbomoso route claimed the lives of 19 passengers on April 14, 2024. Biu stressed the importance of harsh penalties, such as jail time without the option of fines, to discourage reckless driving.
“We have written to all state governors to help prosecute drivers that are causing road crashes. We have received a letter from the Kaduna State government expressing its commitment to prosecute these drivers. We hope that other states will follow suit in directing their commissioners of justice or police so that the drivers who indulge or violate road rules are prosecuted.
‘’In fact, we are advocating for a jail term without the option of a fine so that by the time we have 50 jailed drivers, everyone will take caution. It is a collective effort.”
Additionally, the Corps Marshal emphasized that the FRSC is enhancing its partnership with the judiciary nationwide to speed up the trial process for drivers implicated in road accidents, ensuring they are held accountable under the law.
“Corps is already deepening ongoing collaboration with the judiciary across the 36 federation states for speedy trials of drivers involved in road traffic crashes. “As such, all drivers and vehicle owners who cause crashes on the roads will face the wrath of the law, and this will serve as a deterrent to others who are recalcitrant and drive dangerously or recklessly on the road.”
“During the 2024 Easter Special Patrol period, the Corps recorded a reduction in fatalities, as 33 victims were killed in 2024 against 81 killed in the same period in 2023. This represents a 59.3 percent reduction.
“Similarly, during the Eid-El-Fitr special patrol, while the total number of people killed in 2023 was 59, people killed in the same period in 2024 were reduced to 28, signifying a drop of 52.5 percent,” Biu said.
