Good example from FRSC

In a demonstration of transparency and honesty, officials of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) from the Ondo Unit Command, along the Ondo/Ore Highway, recently returned N2 million to one Mr. Kunle Makinwa, a victim of armed robbery attack.

According to a statement by the Commission’s Public Education Officer, Samuel Obayemi, the FRSC patrol team was operating along the Ondo-Ore route when a Nissan Primera vehicle was driven to their point of patrol by the driver, who had escaped from an armed robbery attack with serious injuries.

Makinwa reportedly handed over a bag containing the sum of N2 million to the FRSC operatives, who subsequently rushed him to a hospital for medical attention. Later, the road safety officials contacted the victim’s boss, Mr. Franklin Aladenika, and the Enuowa Police Station, where it was confirmed that a police officer had earlier been attacked by the same armed robbery gang.
Following a proper identification and evidence of withdrawal of the same amount before the incident, the recovered money was handed over to Aladenika while the injured driver was treated and discharged from the hospital.

We commend these FRSC operatives for discharging their duties with passion, care and high sense of patriotism and accountability. This is not the first time that members of the Commission would demonstrate this type of good conduct. Available records show that FRSC operatives from different units in the country have reportedly returned similar amounts, or those higher in value, to victims of road accidents. They have even gone ahead to return belongings, including money, of dead victims of road mishaps to their family members.

This is a confirmation that there are still honest Nigerians, the strangulating economic condition notwithstanding. The actions of these fine officers should be recommended to the rank and file of the FRSC for worthy emulation. We also call on other security agencies, especially those that work on the highways, to copy the sterling performance and exemplary attitudes of these officers. It shows that the authorities of the FRSC inculcate in their men ethical and moral values that make them value the lives of others, as well as their belongings, even when money is involved.

The police, particularly, whose men also work on highways, should borrow a leaf from the example of the FRSC officers and let it influence their attitude to work and relationship with victims of road accidents. What the operatives have done goes a long way to show that honesty remains the best policy in all that we do, and that there is still hope for this country.

All Nigerians, irrespective of where they work, should be prepared to demonstrate honesty in their personal lives. That is the only way the government can succeed in its re-branding campaign.
Nigeria has come to a sorry pass due largely to the neglect of our ethical and moral values. It is time we re-invoked the agelong cherished values that had earlier guided our attitudes and regulated the way we do things.

We call on the FRSC, and indeed the country and other private organisations, to reward these worthy ambassadors for distinguishing themselves on duty. Let those in charge of national honours also consider Nigerians who have displayed high sense of responsibility and honesty such as the FRSC officers and men. Over time, the list has been saturated with names of people commonly associated with the nation’s politics, in total neglect of the other sectors. The time we are in now calls for moral re-armament and ethical orientation, hence the need to give honour to all these beacons of hope and honesty in our society.