Anambra State Government on Thursday warned that any person found guilty of driving a vehicle which is not roadworthy will be prosecuted and if such a person commits manslaughter or murder on the road, the government will make such a person feel the full weight of the law.
The warning is coming on the heels of the incessant accidents that have resulted in the loss of lives, especially the multiple crash at Ihiala last weekend that claimed two lives at a Police checkpoint.
Truck drivers had started a protest last week which had lasted for three days, before a taskforce set up met with their leaders and amicably resolved some concerns they raised, at a crucial meeting in the office of the Anambra State Commissioner of Police in Awka.
A truce was reached after the State Commissioner of Police, Echeng Echeng, formally directed that the police block mounted at Azia Junction in Ihiala often blamed for accidents in the place, be removed.
The State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, C-Don Adinuba in a statement on Thursday, said the State Government has commended all the persons who contributed to the peaceful resolution of the impasse on the Ihiala stretch of the Onitsha-Owerri Road following the blocking of the road by drivers who belong to the Freight Forwarders Transport Association protesting against an accident in the area involving one of their number.
The Commissioner said Governor Willie Obiano has expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Information and Public Enlightenment for leading the initiative which resolved the road impasse.
“The State Government also commends the chairman of the Task Force of the Freight Forwarders Transport Association, Mr Chukwuka Okakpu, for “his wise intervention.
“He is mature and knowledgeable,” he said.
The government lauded Police Commissioner Echeng for his flexibility in heeding to the demands of the people.
“It is commendable that he accepted to remove the roadblock regardless of whether it actually contributed to some accidents in recent times on the road which is on a slope,” stated the Information Commissioner.
The Government warned road users in the state, especially tanker and truck drivers, against driving vehicles which are not roadworthy.
“The rate at which heavy duty vehicles, whose brake systems fail and cause havoc, is alarming.
“This new phenomenon must be checked immediately.
“Drivers and transport owners cannot continue with the explanation that they cannot fix their brake systems or provide rear lights for their vehicles, on account of economic challenges in the country. It is no longer tolerable.
“The lives of our people are most precious,” stated Adinuba.
