FRSC plans to establish safety corps in public schools in Bayelsa

THE Bayelsa State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr Ikechukwu Igwe has said that safety permeates every facet of the human life and environment, noting that plans are underway to establish safety corps in public schools in eight local government areas of the state.

He pointed that the gesture has become imperative because of the vulnerability of pupils to accident within and outside school premises, stressing that ensuring safety and staying safe is everybody’s business.

Igwe made the disclosure while briefing the Chairman of the Traditional Rulers Council, King Alfred Diete Spiff in his office in Yenagoa.

He alluded that there are cases of more accident during wet season, basically because vehicle tyres are only glide on the surface of tarred road, adding that situation is even worse for private vehicle owners and drivers that are using worn out tyres in the state.

Igwe reiterated that the safety command was committed to the maintenance of safer roads in the state, and that they would do everything possible to educate commuters on measure to stay safe in order to reduce accident now that it has begun to rain every day in the state.

On the establishment of waterways safety corps, Igwe described it as a “policy issue.”

“Yes, the traditional ruler thought about it but that was a policy issue; right here in Bayelsa, plans are underway to establish the Road Safety Corps in secondary schools across in the state.”

Earlier, Chairman of the Traditional Ruler Council, King Diete Spiff had called for the establishment of waterways safety corps for the nation’s coastal lines.

Spiff said that establishing such safety corps would go a long way in checkmating boat mishap, as well as creating jobs, not in Bayelsa alone but Nigeria at large.

He added that water transportation like road, was crucial to national development.

“While we have the safety corps for the road, we should also be talking about the possibility of having the waterways safety corps, either making it part of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) or a separate corps backed by law,” Spiff said.

The monarch averred that Bayelsa is a predominantly riverine state and water remains the major means of transportation in the state.

Spiff pointed that out of the eight Local Government Areas of the state, only four including Yenagoa, Ogbia, Sagbama and Kolokumo/Opokuma can be accessed by road.

To this end, while commending Igwe and his men, he stressed the need for them to intensify effort in taking their sensitization campaign to the grassroots, especially communities that can be accessed by road.