The Oyo State command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) recorded 105 road traffic crashes in the first quarter of the year, the sector commander, Joshua Adekanye, has said.

Mr Adekanye said this during a lecture to mark the 2023 West African Road Safety Organisation (WARSO) Day on Monday in Ibadan.

The sector commander attributed the high number of road crashes to speed violations, saying it accounted for 68.57 per cent out of 105 recorded incidents.

He added that burst tyres and dangerous driving incidents followed closely as they accounted for 4.76 per cent and 11.5 per cent of the crashes recorded.

Mr Adekanye, however, said the record of accidents in the first quarter of the year showed a decline in road crashes in the state when compared with the first quarters of 2021 and 2022.

He said that the corps’ commitment to reducing road crashes to the barest minimum and with the support of the government and other stakeholders had contributed to the decline in crashes.

“Our nation can be removed from the list of most dangerous roads to drive motor vehicles to global examples of safe roads that respect the sanctity of human life and provide an enabling environment for economic progress if we obey the traffic rules,” he added.

The sector commander said that the 15 countries that are members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are members of WARSO.

He said that the main goal of WARSO was to promote and reinforce road safety in West Africa through effective management of road safety and traffic matters with a view to drastically reducing road traffic crashes.

Mr Adekanye said that WARSO Day was celebrated annually on May 8 in Nigeria and other ECOWAS countries.

In his lecture, Benjamin Oluwabusuyi of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) called on FRSC to continue improving its public services and effectively managing casualty on roads in Nigeria.

Matthew Olaogun, an official of the Oyo State Hospital Management Board, called for more synergy in reducing casualties on the roads and advised officials of the FRSC to be diligent in discharging their duties.

(NAN)