By Besiru Enakhimion.
When this writer was growing up, he saw traffic police men in white shirts upon black trousers at busy junctions in cities like Lagos and Benin. Then, vehicle inspection officers (V.I.O.) were also common on the roads. Another set of traffic wardens that were on the roads, are the men and women in orange tops upon black trousers/skirts, the ones fondly called "Yellow fever". The regime of ex- Military President Ibrahim Babangida introduced the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), a traffic control agency that took traffic management to a higher level at its inception.
The increase in the number of motor vehicles and motorists on Nigerian roads probably led to the creation of traffic control units in the ministries of transport of virtually all the States in the country; the Federal Capital Territory not being left out.
Recently, the Edo State Government also created a traffic control unit in the Ministry of Transport, called the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA). This is being derisively called, the "Oshiomhole Police" by people of Edo State, most of who are contemptuous of the operations of EDSTMA.
All over the world, the purpose of setting up traffic management agencies is to ease traffic problems through prevention of obstructions on the roads.
One of the ways to prevent obstructions on the roads is for the men and women of the traffic management units to assist motorists whenever they (the motorists) run into problems while plying the roads. For instance, a car that was sound while in the garage of its owner can suddenly or unexpectedly develop some mechanical faults while on the road. When a motorist finds himself or herself in such a mechanical mess, his best friend and rescuer should be men and women of the traffic management units.
Therefore, the job of the traffic control agencies is to come to the rescue of motorists in time of trouble. Ultimately, the establishment of traffic management agency is for the benefit of motorists. It is not originally intended to inflict more pains or harm on motorists.
However, if a state government's aim of setting up a traffic management agency is peculiar and at variance with the main aims of setting up traffic management agencies worldwide, the results and actions of the officials of such agencies will also be negative and unpleasant to the people they were originally meant to serve.
It has been alleged that most traffic management agencies were set up by State Governments to serve as a source of revenue for the States. It is also alleged that State Governments set monthly financial targets for the agencies to meet. It is in a bid to meet the set targets that propels the officials to arrest motorists and extort money from them unjustly. One will not be far from the right if one should ask why a State Government should set up a traffic management unit to raise money for the State. It becomes a sad commentary when a drug (control agency) originally administered to cure the ailment of a patient eventually aggravate the problems it was meant to cure. This could be likened to a product once introduced by a bank, called "No wahala (trouble) loan". Naturally, people are supposed to solve their problems with loans, but in the case of the aforementioned facility, it inflicted more "wahala" on the beneficiaries.
In Benin City, the fear of the men of the Edo State Traffic Management Agency has become the beginning of wisdom for private car owners plying Benin roads, not because they (the traffic wardens) are doing a wonderful job, but because of their extortionist tendencies and the inhuman treatment visited on motorists. For fear of embarrassment and harassment, most private car owners have resorted to parking their cars at home to go on commercial vehicles, which seem to be covered by "Oshiomole Police" immunity.
The most unfortunate characteristic of these traffic wardens is that a motorist might not have infringed any traffic laws before he or she gets arrested. If a driver is unlucky to run into any of the overzealous officers, he (the driver) would be blocked, the omnipresent towing vans will be called to duty, two of the tires of the affected car would be deflated and the owner made to pay the sum of one hundred naira to pump each of the tyres. In Benin, most owners of jeep have turned them into towing vans, all registered with the EDSTMA. When you observe the operations of the men of the Edo State Traffic Management Agency, you would likely conclude that men of the Nigeria Police Force are saints in terms of extorting money from motorists.
As motorists are complaining in Benin, so they are in other States and the FCT where there are traffic management units that are not established by the Federal Government.
What is the way forward? No one is advocating that traffic offenders should go with impunity, but State Governments should not see their traffic management agencies as money spinning machines to jack up internally generated revenue of the States.
There should be transparency in recruitment. Most of the officials of these agencies are crude in the way they relate with the public. This is probably due to the mode of recruitment of these officials. Presently, most State Governments based their staff recruitments on political patronage. It is adviced that there should be transparency in the mode of recruitments of personnel's into these government agencies so that only those who are qualified to do the job are recruited. This is an office that has to do with relating with different classes of people. Such offices require educated people, not drop outs.
Officials of the traffic management agencies also need to be trained and retrained. Seminars should be organized for them, especially on how to relate with members of the public. They should be told that they exist because of motorists and that they are not enemies of motorists.
Another area that should be addressed is in the area of remuneration. These employees should not be placed on commission. Rather, they should be paid encouraging wages.
Motivation and punishment should be visited on those that deserve them. Officials who distinguish themselves on duty should be rewarded adequately while those found wanting should be punished adequately too.
There should also be a synergy between the States' owned traffic management agencies and those of the Federal Government like the FRSC. A genuine cooperation between these bodies will make traffic management easy and cheap.
For instance, the FRSC has an encouraging track record in terms of performance; the States' owned traffic agencies indeed have much to learn and gain from the former; this is why they should all work together.
Besiru Enakhimion is of the Federal Information Centre, Benin.Print PDF
Federal Ministry of Information (FMI) Nigeria