By STANLEY NWANOSIKE

The Chief Vehicle Inspection Officer (VIO) in Enugu State, Mr Val Chime, has appealed to the state government for increase in manpower, requesting for a minimum of 60 fresh officers.

Chime told newsmen in Enugu on Monday that the Agency needed 60 fresh regular officers to be able to provide manpower for the expansion of its zones.

He said that currently the agency operated in six zones within the state with a futuristic plan for expansion.

The VIO Chief said that there were plans to expand its operational zones to every major axis of the state to ensure that accidents, due to unworthy vehicles, are minimised.

“Presently, we are having 13 regular VIO officers still remaining in the system and we apply for an ad-hoc staff arrangement to get the rest manpower that ensures our daily routine vehicle inspection work.

“The agency is gradually having an aged staff that needs younger officers that will learn the rudiments of the job, be energetic, agile and zealous to withstand the hazards of the job.

“The older officers in the agency need younger officers to train and mentor to maturity in the job and those that will eventually take over from them in the near future.

He appealing to the governor, Mr Peter Mbah, and the Commissioner for Transport, Dr Obi Ozor, to grant the VIO the request.

Chime noted that no state in the federation had less than 50 regular VIO officials, adding that in Anambra, there were over 200 regular VIO officers manning the 21 council areas of the state.

The VIO chief also called on the state government to support the agency with logistics, especially operational vehicles.

According to him, a situation where the agency does not have any operational vehicle remained discouraging.

Chime, however, lauded Gov. Mbah for the massive investment in road infrastructure, adding that within two years, all roads especially those in the major cities in the state received attention.

He said, “Now, we have a metropolis, where you hardly have a pothole and this is good for the 100 CNG long buses introduced into the state.

“The CNG buses, the five bus terminals and the “Iji card” transport payment system as well as Enugu Air, expanding to various national routes, are game-changers for the transport future of Enugu.

“These multi-modal transport systems and their effective management are being copied by other states in the country.

“It is only possible with a visionary and technology-savvy governor like Gov Mbah and he has placed security and technology to protect these investments.” (NAN)