As part of activities lined up to improve vehicular movement and to mitigate against crashes during the Eid-El-Kabir celebration, the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi has approved the deployment of 33,000 personnel, both regular and special marshals, to address wrong road usage by motorists which results in high number of Road Traffic Crashes (RTCs) during festivities and ensure a downward trend in the number of RTCs.

The Corps Public Education Officer, Bisi Kazeem emphasised that the operation would focus on traffic control, excessive speeding, dangerous driving/overtaking, clearance of road obstructions, seatbelt use violation, zero tolerance for use of phone while driving, lane indiscipline and route violation among others as these have been identified as reoccurring factors of RTCs.

In a press statement, the spokesman stated that the 2017 Eid-El-Kabir Sallah special patrol operation is scheduled to commence from August 31 to September 6, 2017 and personnel had been briefed appropriately to perform their duties which included public enlightenment, traffic calming, traffic control, enforcement and rescue services. For ease of operation and prompt rescue services, 859 patrol vans, 106 ambulances, 267 motorbikes and 22 tow trucks had been deployed to cover critical routes and crash prone areas.

According to Kazeem, the Corps Marshal wished to remind Nigerians that the holiday is for celebration with family members and loved ones, especially for the Muslim faithfuls. In this regard, motorists were advised to bear in mind the need to adhere to stipulated traffic rules and regulations during their journeys as over 200 mobile courts would be set up to prosecute erring offenders.

Kazeem further urged the motoring public to practice safe road use culture and give their maximum cooperation to FRSC personnel for the desired success. He also called on the general public to notify FRSC in the event of an emergency through its emergency line 0700-CALL-FRSC (0700-22553772) or toll free number 122 for prompt response as road safety is a shared responsibility.

While wishing Nigerians happy Eid-El-Kabir celebration, the Corps Marshal assured them that personnel would be on ground round-the-clock, while road side clinics and ambulance points across the country would be open to emergencies. He also thanked all military and paramilitary agencies for their sustained support as they had equally been placed on standby for effective collaboration.

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