The Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, has issued a warning to fleet operators to desist from tampering with the calibrated Speed Limiting Devices in their vehicles for economic benefits or any other reasons.
It warned that any operator found doing that would have their vehicles impounded and be forced to re-install and calibrate the speed limiters.
According to the Corps Public Education Officer, Bisi Kazeem, the Corps Marshal, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, who frowned at the dangerous act had issued an express directive to the Zonal Commanding Officers, Sector Commanders and Unit Commanders across the country to impound at sight, any vehicle caught in the act, have the driver prosecuted and force re-installation and calibration of the speed limiting devise.
Oyeyemi lamented that the people who engaged in the act did for economic gains.
He said they sped beyond the prescribed legal speed limit in order to make more trips within a short time to the detriment of the lives of their passengers and other road users.
He noted that the perpetrators wanted to ridicule the achievement recorded by the Corps since the commencement of enforcement on the device, but that the Corps would not allow such to prevail as tactical strategies had been put in place to impound such vehicles and made the drivers face the law accordingly.
“I have directed Commanding Officers to impound all vehicles suspected to have altered the device in their vehicles and ensure that such vehicles recalibrate the device before the vehicles are released and we shall be very strict and swift on this,” he said.
While reiterating the reason the Corps introduced the policy some years back, the Corps Marshal was quoted as saying, “The Federal Road Safety Corps as the lead government agency saddled with the responsibility of Road Traffic Management in Nigeria identified speeding as a major contributing factor to road crashes and attendant casualties in the country.
“To create a safer motoring environment which is our core vision, Federal Road Safety Commission in line with the resolutions reached with Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Automotive Council of Nigeria, Transport Union Association and other stakeholders commenced the implementation and enforcement on the use of Speed Limiting devices in vehicles starting with commercial vehicles, nationwide.”
The Corps Marshal also stated that the law allowed the Corps to carry out such duties when he revealed that “The legal frame work backing the Commission’s implementation and enforcement of Speed Limiting Device for all categories of vehicles in Nigeria is stipulated in section 10(3) (m) of the FRSC (Est.) Act, 2007 and section 152(4) of National Road Traffic Regulation, 2012.”
It would be recalled that the policy came about as a result of the urgent need to put an end to increasing rise in speed related road traffic crashes and the attendant loss of lives and damage to properties.
Having given the policy deserved publicity, the Corps commenced full enforcement starting with commercial vehicles on October 1, 2016.
Kazeem called on the motoring public to always tune into the National Traffic Radio 107.1FM to report any suspected case of speeding, obstruction or any emergency noticed on the road for immediate action.
The station can also be reached through its social media handles as follows: Whatsapp: 08052997848; Facebook Traffic Radio 1; Twitter: @Trafficradio 1; Instagram: Trafficradio 1.
The station could also be reached on the following numbers: GLO: 08052998090, MTN: 09067000015, and SMS on GLO: 08052998012.
FRSC toll free emergency line is 122.
