Following Sunday truck accident which recorded casualties at Ojuelegba, Lagos, the State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, after receiving an interim report of the incident, has directed the Police to speed up investigation of the matter, directing that the driver of the truck and the owner, who are in Police custody, must be prosecuted.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Lagos, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, a copy of which was made available to Nigerian NewsDirect on Monday.
Sanwo-Olu who commiserated with the family of the victims, also directed that the Ministry of Transportation and the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) should meet urgently to find a lasting solution to the menace of falling trucks; while ordering that all laws governing the operations of trucks and related vehicles must be enforced with more vigour and diligence.
The statement reads in part: “The Lagos State Government commiserates with the families who lost their loved ones in the Ojuelegba truck accident on Sunday, January 29, 2023. May The Almighty console them and grant them the strength to go through this difficult time. Nine persons died in the accident.
“Identified victims are:
- Miss Blessing Isioma “F”;
- Abdurahman Okoya Sunday “M”;
iii. Felix John Ifeanyi “M” 40years;
iv Olatokunbo Basirat King “F’ 49years
“Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, after receiving an interim report of the incident, has directed the police to speed up their investigation of the matter. Besides, he has given the following directives:
“The driver of the truck and the owner, who are in police custody, must be prosecuted;
“Ministry of Transportation and Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) should meet urgently to find a lasting solution to the menace of falling trucks; and;
“All the laws governing the operations of trucks and related vehicles must be enforced with more vigour and diligence.
“The incident of 29th January, 2023, is one too many and it shows the irresponsibility of owners and drivers of such articulated vehicles who under the law should care for other road users.
“The Lagos State Government has zero tolerance for large containers that fall off trucks and injure or kill citizens, who are going about their lawful businesses. “The driver (Sodiq Okanlawon) and the owner (Wasiu Lekan) of a container which killed three (3) people on the 26th July, 2020, on Oshodi/Apapa Expressway, Ilasamaja, were prosecuted and convicted on the 28th February, 2022, and sentenced to life imprisonment by Hon. Justice Okikiolu Ighile.
“The State Government will, in a similar manner, ensure that the driver and the owner of the truck involved in the January 29th incident are put on trial for the needless death of our dear citizens.
“This, we hope, will send a strong message to all those who have no regard for other people’s lives that Lagos will not condone their recklessness. They must be stopped, with the strong backing of our laws, because their actions offend our avowed commitment to safety and decency.”