From Ifeoma Ejiofor
The Anambra State Director, National Orientation Agency(NOA), Edozie Ajaegbu, has warned Nigerians against scooping fuel from tankers that are involved in accident.
Ajaegbu described the practice of rushing to scoop fuel at fuel tanker accident scenes as not only strange but callous and dangerous.
The NOA Boss, who wondered why some citizens try to maximize some economic gains from such incidents, queried the spirit of the duty of care from the people.
Mr Ajaegbu posited that ignorance of the dangers associated with the practice was responsible for number of deaths recorded each time fuel tanker accident occurs.
He blamed the accidents in the country which he said had claimed so many lives of innocent Nigerians on over speeding, reckless driving, poverty, the bad roads and driving under the influence of drug.
The Director, who further identified multiplicity of check points on Nigerians roads, plying on the roads at night by the tankers drivers as some of the factors also responsible for the tanker accidents.
The NOA appealed to Federal Road Safety Commission(FRSC) to come up with law banning the tanker drivers from driving under the influence of alcohol and or drugs and as well get alcohol detectors for the operatives.
While suggesting speed limits for the tanker drivers, the NOA boss, further called for empowerment of the men and officers of FRSC, and the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs), by the government at all levels for monitoring the operations of the tanker drivers and other road users.
“NOA and other government information management organizations in the country should expedite actions on re-orientation of the general public on the inherent dangers of scooping fuel on the spots of the tanker mishaps,”he said.
He, however, noted that the age should be considered before engaging a person as a tanker driver, pointing out that a fuel tank should be properly covered to ensure that there is no leakage of fuel on the road with a view to averting unnecessary wanton loss of lives in case of accident.
Meanwhile, disaster was averted in the commercial city of Onitsha on Friday as a tanker was involved in an accident while discharging at an unnamed service station very close to the Military barracks.
But for the prompt response of Anambra State Fire Service, there would have been a repeat of what happened in different parts of the country whenever tankers are involved in accident as people trooped to the scene of the accident to scoop fuel.
The Anambra State fire fighters however put men and materials in place to contain the situation while discouraging the Mammoth crowd that got involved in scooping fuel that spilled from the accidented tanker.