The Lagos State Government has taken some measures to stop truck accidents which has been occurring quite frequently in the state with the accompanying casualty figures.
This is as the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has ordered the prosecution of the driver and owner of the truck which was involved in an accident that left 9 people dead around Ojuelegba on Sunday, January 29, 2023.
This disclosure is contained in a statement issued on Monday, January 30, 2023, by the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotosho, where he expressed the Lagos State Government’s condolence to the families who lost their loved ones in the tragic incident.
Omotosho in the statement said that Governor Sanwo-Olu, after receiving an interim report of the incident, directed the police to speed up their investigation of the matter.
All laws governing truck operations must be enforced
According to the statement, Governor Sanwo-Olu called for collaboration between the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation and the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) to find a lasting solution to the menace of falling trucks.
The statement partly reads, ‘’Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, after receiving an interim report of the incident, has directed the police to speed up their investigation of the matter. Besides, he has given the following directives:
- The driver of the truck and the owner, who are in police custody, must be prosecuted;
- Ministry of Transportation and Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) should meet urgently to find a lasting solution to the menace of falling trucks; and
- All the laws governing the operations of trucks and related vehicles must be enforced with more vigour and diligence.
‘’The incident of 29th January 2023, is one too many and it shows the irresponsibility of owners and drivers of such articulated vehicles who under the law should care for other road users.
‘’The Lagos State Government has zero tolerance for large containers that fall off trucks and injure or kill citizens, who are going about their lawful businesses. The driver (Sodiq Okanlawon) and the owner (Wasiu Lekan) of a container which killed three (3) people on the 26th July 2020, on Oshodi/Apapa Expressway, Ilasamaja, were prosecuted and convicted on the 28th February 2022, and sentenced to life imprisonment by Hon. Justice Okikiolu Ighile.
‘’The State Government will, in a similar manner, ensure that the driver and the owner of the truck involved in the January 29th incident are put on trial for the needless death of our dear citizens.
‘’This, we hope, will send a strong message to all those who have no regard for other people’s lives that Lagos will not condone their recklessness. They must be stopped, with the strong backing of our laws, because their actions offend our avowed commitment to safety and decency.’’
For catch up
- Recall that on January 29, 2023, Nairametrics had reported that 9 people were confirmed to have been crushed to death after a 20 feet container-laden truck fell on a commercial bus at the Ojuelegba area of Lagos State.
- According to reports, investigations showed that the commercial bus was picking up passengers at the bus stop along the Ojuelegba Bridge when the truck lost control and fell over the side of the bridge.
