. . . Advises Communities to Rein In Masquerades
By Abuchi Onwumelu
The Federal Road Safety Corps, Anambra State Sector Command, on Thursday, 7 November, flagged off the 2019 Ember Months Safety Campaign with a call on Ndi Anambra to imbibe the road safety ideals and endeavour to obey traffic rules and regulations.
The campaign which was flagged off at Upper Iweka, Onitsha, with the theme “Road Safety is a State of Mind, Road Traffic Crash is An Absence Of Mind, Stay Alert, Stay Alive”, was aimed at reminding road users of the need to be careful while plying the roads this yuletide period.
Speaking during the event, the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Mr. Boboye Oyeyemi, said the agency was poised to arrest masquerades that caused road accidents during the yuletide.
The Corps Marshal who was represented by the Assistant Zonal Commander, Zone Five Benin, Mr. Keyinde Adeleye, said that investigations over the years had revealed that masquerades in the state had caused many road crashes during the yuletide and warned that the command would no longer tolerate such.
Mr Oyeyemi who noted that the Federal Road Safety Corps respected the customs and traditions of Ndi Anambra, made it clear that they would not allow masquerades to cut short the lives of Ndi Anambra during the festive period, and revealed that they had resolved to use the media and all public enlightenment platforms to proffer solutions to reducing and possibly eliminating road traffic crashes.
For his part, the Anambra State Director of the National Orientation Agency, Mr. Charles Nworji, said that over the years, the ember months safety campaign had been a timely reminder to all road users, of the need for deep reflections on road use behaviour, which, he said, demanded that extra caution must be exercised in the manner motorists conducted themselves while operating automobiles, especially during the yuletide.
Addressing the gathering, the Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, who was represented during the occasion by his Deputy, Dr. Nkem Okeke, said that his administration had done so much in the areas of protecting the lives and properties of Ndi Anambra, noting that he would continue to support FRSC, Anambra State Sector Command.
Earlier, the Sector Commander of FRSC, Anambra State Command, Mr. Andrew Kumapayi, expressed gratitude to God for the turn-out of participants and extolled the governor for what he described as untiring support from Anambra State Government.
One of the drivers that attended the event, Mr. Ifeanyi Chukwuma, described it as a life-saving campaign and assured that he would adhere strictly to all the traffic rules and regulations during the festive period.
Cultural Dances, drama and song from the members of the National Youths Service Corps were part of the highpoints of the event which attracted transporters, drivers, military and para-military officials, the Nigeria Red Cross Society, Anambra State Traffic Management Authority and Media executives, among others.
