The Federal Road Safety Corps is seeking support from stakeholders in the road transport sector to curb the overloading of passengers and goods by motorists.
At a policy dialogue it convened on this and other road safety issues in Abuja, Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed stressed that the FRSC alone cannot keep the roads safe.
It has been a major concern, even as road safety authorities continue efforts to curb the dangerous practice of overloading passenger and haulage vehicles.
Even in major cities, it is not uncommon to see passenger vehicles, whether commercial or private, carrying two passengers in the front alongside the driver and four others in the back seats, seven people in a vehicle designed for five.
A dangerous and unsafe practice.
Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed says this must stop, arguing that punitive measures such as fines and vehicle impoundment should not be the only deterrents.
Other stakeholders weigh in on the issue.
The media is also being enlisted to drive the anti-overloading campaign, with the Director-General of Voice of Nigeria, Jibrin Baba Ndace, outlining what that role entails.
The expectation is that the campaign will encourage a change in motorists’ attitudes towards overloading, with its impact to be assessed in the days, weeks and months ahead.
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(Editor: Ada Ononye)
