Road Accidents

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The Intimidation of Power: Why Arming the FRSC is a Step Backwards for Nigeria’s Road Safety

/ Sam Aderibigbe / Leave a comment

There’s a thin line between order and oppression — and when power begins to arm itself against those it is meant to protect, that line dissolves into tyranny disguised as security.

The recent call by the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) for its officers to bear firearms is more than an administrative request; it is a revealing metaphor for a nation drifting steadily toward the intimidation of power — where authority seeks validation not from legitimacy, but from weaponry.

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Sagamu-Benin Expressway: A Dangerous Path for Drivers

/ Sam Aderibigbe / Leave a comment

Remember that childhood game of “Snakes and Ladders”? Sadly, the Sagamu-Benin Expressway in Ogun State feels more like a perpetual descent down a rickety, pothole-ridden chute than a smooth climb toward progress. On a recent trip to Epe, I had to pass through this expressway, and it was a horrifying experience. The state of the road, coupled with the terrible traffic, made it a journey I wouldn’t wish to undertake again any time soon. This critical artery, connecting the economic powerhouse of Lagos to the heart of the South-South region, has become a motorist’s nightmare, a national Continue reading →

Scourge of our Roads

/ Sam Aderibigbe / Leave a comment

It manifests itself, like a hydra headed monster each time without fail. It’s no respecter of persons and has refused to be tamed nor corralled.

To what do we owe this evil resident on our roads, that is blood sucking, hair-raising and bone chilling in approach and delivery.

How did it become so entrenched in the fibre of our being that we are now inured to it and seem unperturbed about it.

The Nigeria situation has reached such an alarming proportion even to the point of sheer frustration and near helplessness. Nigeria continues to feature in the bottom half of World Health Organisation country rankings of road traffic accidents. The country’s 149th ranking in 2009 out of 178 member states indicates the hazards associated with road transportation in a country that is largely dependent on its road network for economic, social and physical activities (Sumaila, AbdulGaniyu Femi, Road crashes trends and safety management in Nigeria). Pressing on his research, (Sumaila, 2013) stated that; Indeed news of road traffic accidents in Nigeria no longer stirs any surprise. What may be shocking, however, is the magnitude of the fatality.

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