Abuja shut down for Friday May 29 Inauguration

Abuja, the nation’s capital territory is currently under heavy security lock down ahead of tomorrow’s inauguration of the President- elect, Muhammadu Buhari.
Eagle-eyed and heavily armed defence and security forces have taken
over several strategic points within the Federal Capital City, FCC, frisking motorists.

At the Obafemi Awolowo Road in Utako/Jabi axis, defence forces from the Brigade of Guards, Nigerian Army, as well as Naval Ratings cordoned off two of the three-lane road, leaving only one for motorists going towards Jabi-Gwagwa-Karmo.
The development has led to heavy traffic gridlock in the area.

Although the operatives did not stop most vehicles, they watch the faces of occupants of each vehicle and flagged some down for further checks.

At the AYA Roundabout, men of the Nigeria Police Force and soldiers are also keeping vigil.

At the Lebanese-owned Wonderland Amusement Park, which has been a subject of terror investigations by the Department of State Services, DSS, operatives of the service and some policemen were also sighted monitoring movement in and out of the area.

The situation around the National Stadium was not different.
Also, as part of preparations for a hitch-free presidential inauguration, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Solomon Arase, has ordered the diversion of traffic on all roads around Eagle Square on Friday.

The square is the venue of the inauguration.

Arase has also ordered tight security within the Eagle Square, hotels, key and vulnerable places within the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, as well as the mounting of Tactical Operation Points on all roads leading to and out of the FCT.

The IGP however apologised for the inconveniences the arrangements may cause motorists and members of the public.
In a related development, the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, said it has deployed 23,000 personnel along designated routes to mitigate road crashes during the presidential inauguration and swearing-in of governorselect in various states of the federation.

Specifically, the corps has deployed 2,000 personnel, 150 patrol vehicles, 15 ambulances, 35 motor bikes and seven tow trucks along designated routes of the FCT as part of measures to ensure seamless traffic flow in Abuja during the presidential inauguration ceremony.

Corps Marshal and chief executive of the FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi, disclosed this in Abuja, while speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting.

He said FRSC personnel have been fully mobilised for the inauguration ceremony across the country.

Question on the enforcement of the speed limiters also came up at the forum as the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, asked for a shift in the date of commencement, which was slated for June 1, 2015.

Deputy chairman, NUPENG, Comrade Dayyabu Garga, said the demand for a shift was to allow for proper sensitisation of members.

He noted that proper awareness of the importance of the device would allow for easy implementation, stressing that wider acceptance of seat belt laws was achieved because of the level of enlightenment given to it before implementation.

Also, the head, Department of Heavy and Lightweight Truck of the NURTW, Suleiman Dansaki, said extensive enlightenment is needed to further achieve nationwide awareness, hence the need to shift the date.
After extensive deliberations, the stakeholders agreed that the implementation of the maximum road speed limiter device for vehicles should commence with subtle enforcement with no booking from June 1 and full compliance to commence on September 1.

Oyeyemi commended the leadership of the different transport unions for their cooperation, stressing that there have been no road blockage since the journey for the introduction of the speed limiters began.
He said the enforcement of the speed limiter law would not focus on paying fines but that offenders’ vehicles would be impounded until they are made to install the device.

“It is going to be like the driving license case. Instead of paying fines, we impound your vehicle, you install it and then you go. Whatever we can do to get everybody install this we will do, so that you cannot accelerate more than 90 kilometers,” he explained.

Oyeyemi noted that already, the National Automotive Council, NAC, has written all vehicle assembly plant in the country to ensure that all vehicles produced by them are equipped with speed limiters.
In a communiqué issued after the one-day meeting, participants observed that speeding portends danger to the lives and properties of road users, and that the rate of road fatalities arising from speeding is alarming and requires drastic measures to tame, among other things.

Apart from the resolution to shift full compliance to September 1, the forum also resolved that transporters and fleet operators should cooperate with the FRSC in the implementation of the new law, by duly installing the device in all vehicles in their fleet.

They also agreed that the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON, should consider setting up deadline for all imported vehicles, while NAC should ensure that vehicles manufactured in Nigeria are installed with the speed limiter.

Story: NATIONAL MIRROR