General News
FRSC Takes Aim at Overloading, Calls for Safer Roads
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has appealed to transport operators and the motoring public to desist from overloading and other practices that hinder effective traffic management in the country.
FRSC Corps Marshal, Mallam Shehu Mohammed, made the appeal at the Abuja Declaration 2026.
The Corps Marshal said the event was organised as a national commitment to ending vehicle overloading in Nigeria, noting that the menace has continued to affect socio-economic activities, cause the destruction of infrastructure and lead to loss of lives on the highways.
Mallam Shehu Mohammed also explained that the Abuja Declaration initiative was designed to mobilise major stakeholders towards achieving effective traffic management and ensuring sanity on the nation’s highways.
According to the FRSC Corps Marshal, overloading accelerates vehicle deterioration and increases crash rates, stressing that no reduction in transportation costs is worth the loss of human lives.
“It is a national movement involving everyone. Safe loading is not merely a regulatory requirement but a responsibility for all. It is a shared responsibility. No family deserves to suffer pain and loss.”
The Guest Speaker and Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Jibrin Baba Ndace, while speaking on the theme,
“Ending Overloading, Saving Lives: A Major Commitment to Safer Roads and Responsible Transportation in Nigeria,” said road transport remains the most important means of transportation and must be made safe.
He said overloading had become a major national challenge to development, requiring a coordinated approach and collective effort to address.
According to him, the government is investing heavily in road construction and rehabilitation, while overloading by motorists continues to damage the infrastructure provided.
He urged transport union executives to join the FRSC’s campaign and sensitisation efforts against overloading and the flagrant violation of traffic rules and regulations.
He also urged road users to respect FRSC officials and refrain from attacking them while carrying out their duties, especially during emergency operations.
He stressed that all road users must avoid reckless driving and change their attitudes towards ensuring a significant reduction in road crashes and promoting safer roads for economic development.
In his remarks, the National President of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Alhaji Musa Mohammed, emphasised the need for transport unions to collaborate with the FRSC and other security agencies to curb overloading.
Alhaji Musa Mohammed, however, stressed the need for FRSC personnel to remain professional in the discharge of their duties, while urging other security agencies to allow the Corps to carry out its mandate effectively.
Other stakeholders, in their separate goodwill messages, pledged their unalloyed support for all initiatives aimed at restoring sanity on the nation’s highways.