The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) says it is set to begin full enforcement of the installation of speed limiting device in commercial vehicles nationwide on Wednesday.
Spokesman of the corps, Mr Bisi Kazeem, told newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja that sector and field commands of the agency had been fully mobilised for the exercise.
Kazeem said that the army, police, civil defence, Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agencies were on standby to provide security support.
“Enforcement of the speed limiting device commences tomorrow (Wednesday) and there is no going back.
“In readiness, the field commands have been fully mobilised to commence full blast enforcement nationwide.
“To facilitate enforcement, a portal of speed limiting device (SLD) was created and is operational and a short code to confirm the installation of SLD is active.
“A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been dispatched with a directive that copies of those SOP’s be shared to security agencies within the commands’ areas of jurisdiction.
“A template for daily report has also be designed and forwarded to commands. Booking sheets with Failure to Install Speed Limiting Device (FSLD) have been distributed to field commands.
“To ensure seriousness of purpose, sector commanders have been advised to start with joint patrols with unit commands to have more personnel and create impact for the whole of February.
“Also, commands are to hold mobile court sittings at the onset and where mobile courts are likely to slow down enforcement, such commands should go ahead without them.
“We have created a situation room to monitor and collate report on daily basis and test-run for the clampdown.
“What we are trying to do is to register that it has started. It is not necessarily impounding all vehicles in Nigeria in one swoop thereby making life difficult for road users, no.
“It is a gradual thing that we are starting all over Nigeria and that is to say it is no longer advisory.
“You either pay fines or be taken to (a) mobile court to be charged or, in extreme situation, you are asked to come and install before your vehicle is released to you after impoundment.’’
Kazeem said defaulters would either pay a fine of N3,000 or have their vehicles impounded.
He explained that the decision to begin with commercial vehicles was informed by the high rate of their involvement in road accidents across the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that enforcement of the SLD installation has been postponed three time since Sept. 1, 2015 following appeal by stakeholders.
Kazeem said that the need to begin with commercial vehicles could not be over-emphasised owing to the high rate of their involvement in road accidents.
Citing FRSC statistics, he said commercial vehicles accounted for over 50 per cent of the total number of vehicles involved in road crashes in the country.
He explained that vendors of the device had been selected through a screening process by an inter-agency technical committee.
Membership of the committee, according to him, comprises the FRSC, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC).
