On FRSC’s speed limiting device

WE have heard a lot from the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) on the need for vehicles to install the speed limiting devices. In fact, the road safety organisation said it would not go back on the enforcement of the new policy from October 1, stating that excessive speed is the major reason we have high road accidents in the country.

In my opinion, the terrible condition of roads is also another issue to consider, and it is important for the FRSC to work hand-in-hand with the Federal Government towards rehabilitating our roads first.

At this period of economic pain, enforcing commercial vehicle operators to install the devices, which can cost as high as N45,000 on each vehicle, will only lead to an increase in transport fares. Agreed that nothing is too much to safeguard lives from being lost on our roads, but why is the FRSC not encouraging the Federal Government to play its part by rehabilitating our roads.

The FRSC has been around for years, and over these years, we have seen our roads become death traps, but the only thing this organisation can think of is enforcing speed limiting devices, which will definitely cause more hardship on Nigerians.

While I am not against efforts to reduce road accidents through the installation of speed limiting devices, I think there is also the need to talk about the bad road networks in the country, and the FRSC is guilty of this by not informing government of the need to rehabilitate our roads.

However, if the FRSC will go ahead with the enforcement of the speed limiting devices, then it should make arrangements with the equipment installation companies on how the devices can be paid for instalmentally.

An arrangement can be made with individual’s banks on how the deductions can be made on monthly basis, and this will help ease the pain of having to procure the device at a go. However, anything short of this is like adding to the suffering of Nigerians who have already been burdened with the economic situation in the country.

I hope the FRSC will come up with a human face on this issue.

• Abbey Olusola,

Akure,

Ondo State.