Speeches

2008 Lagos State Special Marshal Sectoral Workshop

Aug 14, 2008 - Probably one of the most challenging jobs in Nigeria today is traffic management. Why? Because road is the most developed and preferred means of transportation in the country and this makes it very vital to the economy and social well-being of our country and people with heavy implications for stress and related illness, traffic snarls, man hour loss and accidents. Available data has shown that among the three means of transportation, water, air and road, the latter indeed accounts for eighty per cent (80%) of trade and movement in the country.

When you therefore find a crop of dedicated volunteers with proven integrity in their chosen profession who have willingly signed up for traffic management, it is proper to show some appreciation and give them the required training to do their work. This is the kind of spirit that we need to pull Nigeria from the woods and remake it into a prosperous, peaceful and equitable democracy for our collective good. May I therefore commend and whole heartedly endorse the creation of the Special Marshals by the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, to complement efforts of the regular Marshal in traffic management and ensure safety on the road network in the country. I would also like to express my delight for being invited to this occasion and thank the Sector Commander, Lagos State, Corps Commander Kayode Olagunju and his staff for this honour.

This workshop is topical and relevant to present day realities on our roads. Marshaling Resources for Safer Roads, Fuller Lives: The Role of Special Marshals, as the chosen theme of this workshop speaks volume about the proactive nature of the FRSC, Lagos sector command. Incidentally, it is taking place today in one of the very active unit of your special corps, Unit 36 in Arch Bishop Vinning Memorial Church. As volunteers of proven integrity who have shown interest in road safety management, the Marshals need to constantly update their knowledge and expertise to cope in an ever expanding and dynamic society, particularly in the area of global best practices vital for the seamless operation of the FRSC in an increasingly global village. Your status in society and expertise in your chosen profession will also enhance the public acceptance of the work by Commission’s officers and open an avenue for healthy interface of common purpose. Traffic management should in reality involve the time and energy of every road user even as there are statutorily recognized bodies such as the FRSC and LASTMA in Lagos state charged with the function.

To show how serious we should take this crop of volunteers, the Lagos State government in January this year inaugurated our own version known as Special Traffic Mayor. There are 500 of them, men and women of proven integrity and high calling in the society. They are part of the brand new LASTMA, our well motivated, educated, kitted, mobile and efficient road managers who have since put their service to use and make traffic to flow on our ever busy roads with some pleasure that we have never experienced before now.

As the State with the highest vehicular density of 222 vehicles per kilometer in the country, our administration had to take some radical approach to traffic management as part of the general measures on social and economic infrastructural renewal of the commercial mainstay of the country and the largest Mega- City in Africa.

Only a strategic road traffic management approach that is dynamic in conception and flexible in operation can cope in such a situation until developments in the air and water transportation measure up with the situation on our roads. We took the decision to create this special corps based on certain considerations. On my assumption of office in May last year, the traffic situation was getting worse in spite of the dedication and efforts of LASTMA to arrest the chaos that was the traffic situation in Lagos State. The impunity and recklessness exhibited on our roads by drivers was to say the least barbaric, hostile to an investment climate and threatening to lives and property. People drove against traffic at their convenience and even had the audacity to fight LASTMA officials for challenging them.

With the motivation and training that the LASTMA officers have received in law, traffic management, security, administration, public relations they have become better equipped to carry out their statutory functions with assistance of the Special Mayors. Today, the recklessness on our roads has gone down; the carnage has reduced drastically, traffic flow is smooth and steady and what’s more, the incidents of driving against traffic has reduced, thereby gradually inducing a traffic culture in our road users. I am therefore convinced that constant and proper training, and workshops and seminars can go a long way to equip our road managers of whatever category with the required knowledge to deliver on their mandate. I therefore urge the Special Marshals to take this workshop seriously. The work you do is patriotic because the FRSC itself is essentially a service agency. It therefore needs dedicated, punctual and obedient marshals, regular and special.

The Lagos State has always partner with the FRSC in areas of common interest and we will continue to do so because we share in your vision and mission. Our aims and objectives are similar and there would always be areas of convergence.

May I at this juncture declare this workshop open.

I thank you for listening and wish you successful deliberations and discussions at this workshop.

“Eko O ni baje O!”

Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, (SAN)
Governor of Lagos State