FRSC Needs More Support to Save Lives, Retired Deputy Corps Marshal Appeals to President Tinubu

Published By Jerry Adesewo Last updated Jun 9, 2025

FRSC Needs More Support to Save Lives, Retired Deputy Corps Marshal Appeals to President Tinubu

Jerry Adesewo

A retired Deputy Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Dr. Kayode Olagunju, has issued a passionate appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urging further intervention and focused support for the nation’s lead road safety agency. In a compelling public statement, Olagunju reflected on Tinubu’s longstanding commitment to road safety, recalling his efforts as Lagos State Governor, including the establishment of LASTMA, LAMATA, and LASAMBUS—all aimed at improving traffic management and emergency response.

Dr. Olagunju, who once served as the Lagos Sector Commander of the FRSC, highlighted Tinubu’s direct involvement with the Special Marshal arm of the Corps, stressing that the President’s legacy of transport reforms offers hope for current road safety challenges. While commending the ongoing road infrastructure developments spearheaded by Works Minister David Umahi and FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, Olagunju warned that good roads alone do not guarantee safety.

“Paradoxically, good roads in Nigeria have often led to more crashes due to reckless speeding and disregard for traffic rules,” he said, citing grim statistics: over 396,000 lives have been lost and 1.48 million people injured in road crashes between 1960 and 2024. “It is disastrous,” he added, likening the death toll to the equivalent of six fully packed national stadiums.

Olagunju, in a post shared on his Facebook page earlier today, emphasized the capital-intensive nature of road safety operations, pointing out that patrol vehicles, articulated tow trucks, life-support ambulances, and public education campaigns all demand substantial funding.

“We are recording more deaths in the first hour after crashes—the golden hour—because of inadequate emergency medical services and equipment,” he said, noting that many FRSC ambulances are outdated, far apart, or lacking essential life-support features.

He praised the strides made by the FRSC since its establishment in 1988, particularly the 43% reduction in road crashes and 9.7% drop in fatalities compared to the two decades before its creation. But he warned that routine budgetary allocations can no longer meet the Corps’ increasing responsibilities.

According to Olagunju, the FRSC also faces operational challenges from the rising costs of fuel, inadequate personnel, poor access to modern tools like radar guns and speed cameras, and a lack of technological infrastructure needed for smarter enforcement and data management.

“President Tinubu, your transformative touch is needed now more than ever,” Olagunju urged. “The FRSC is doing well, but with your special intervention and that of well-meaning Nigerians, it can do much more to protect lives on our roads.”

Concluding with a sobering reminder, he said: “Nobody is immune to road crashes. It could happen to any of us. Let us support this vital agency now—before the next preventable tragedy.”

FRSC Needs More Support to Save Lives, Retired Deputy Corps Marshal Appeals to President Tinubu