Motorists cry over alleged undue harassment by FRSC officials in Niger
NAN-DS-5
Motorists
By Aminu Ahmed Garko
Minna, March 13, 2017 (NAN) Some motorists in Minna on Monday accused Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officials of undue harrassment and insensitivity.
The motorists, in a separate interview with News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN) in Minna, claimed that the road marshals were too hostile to them.
Hajiya Fatima Bello, a staff of Federal University of Technology Minna, said the marshals should be deployed to highways instead of concentrating in the city harassing motorists.
“They should leave the metropolis and monitor road users on federal highways.
“I was stopped along Mandela road and the next thing the officer asked was my phone number instead of the car particulars, so i had to call my husband.”
A resident, Muazu Abubakar told NAN in Minna that the conduct of some of the road marshals was worrisome.
“My wife was stopped along Bosso road and was booked for not greeting the officer, and later charged for not traffickating when the said officer stopped her.
“They use their uniform to harass innocent road users for reasons best known to them,” he claimed.
According to him, the attitude of the personnel to work is not in conformity with the service rules and regulations.
Another motorist, Mr Moses James urged the road marshals to concentrate on federal highways rather than operating within the metropolis.
He also claimed that the activities of the marshals was affecting civil servants’ early resumption to work.
Another resident, Mr Kayode Bello recalled an incident in which a road safety offocial allegedly punched a motorcylists for not stopping when flagged.
“A commercial motorcyclist with his passenger was stopped and he refused, the next thing was that the road safety personnel used his hand to punch the motorcyclist on the face, breaking his eye classes.
“In normal circumstances the corps should devise means of tracking any traffic offender and not resort to such tactic or pursue traffic offender on busy roads.”
Mary Jiya, who lives in Bariki area of the metropolis told NAN that, “I was inside a tricycle and the road safety officer was trying to stop a car in front of us and the tricycle driver tried to move on. The road marshal just spat on my face.
“I asked the tricycle driver to drop me and I went and complained at the state office of the FRSC.”
Responding to the allegations, the Sector Commander, Mr James Mbatse advised motorists harassed or molested by any road safety officer to report to him, assuring that disciplinary measures would be taken against anyone found wanting.
He however denied that the FRSC was deliberately intimidating motorists, saying that what they insisted on was total compliance to traffic rules and regulations in the state.
“We usually educate our personnel before any operation on how to conduct themselves while on official duty,” Mbatse said, adding that any personnel found wanting would be dealt with.
The sector commander urged motorists to cooperate with the corps to make the roads more safer to use.(NAN)
AAG/MZA
Edited by Maharazu Ahmed