Abuja: The Administrator of the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Justice Babatunde Adejumo, has called for strict regulation, training, and retraining of government drivers across the country. Babatunde made this appeal during his goodwill message at the National Summit of the Special Marshals of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) held in Abuja. He highlighted the issue of drivers behaving as though they own the roads and stressed that traffic management is a global priority.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Babatunde emphasized the alarming number of lives lost annually due to road mismanagement, disobedience, and neglect. This concern was a key motivation for the founding of the FRSC. He stressed the importance of continuous training and retraining of government drivers, particularly those employed by ministries, departments, and agencies, including the judiciary. Babatunde insisted that government drivers must adhere to the law and not consider themselves above it.
Babatunde expressed concern that many official vehicles on Nigerian roads either lack plate numbers or have them concealed, complicating the identification of offenders and creating opportunities for criminal activities. He pointed out that this behavior could make it difficult for the public to distinguish between genuine officials and impostors. Furthermore, Babatunde noted that some government drivers operate without valid driver’s licenses or with expired ones, and some licenses are fraudulently obtained.
He urged the FRSC to focus on these issues to reduce the number of lives lost on the roads. Highlighting the NJI’s role, Babatunde mentioned that the institute will continue to organize training, lectures, seminars, and conferences for judicial officers to empower them to handle traffic-related cases, including drug use and offenses at the grassroots level.
Babatunde reaffirmed the NJI’s partnership with the FRSC, mentioning the provision of its facilities for the summit as part of this collaboration. He also called for support in training NJI drivers to enhance their compliance with road safety regulations and reduce accidents during official duties. He expressed gratitude to the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, and other dignitaries for their involvement in the summit, noting that road safety requires a collective commitment.