The Federal Road Safety Corps, has said it would enforce use of seat belts by rear passengers in moving vehicles from January 1, 2015.
It stated that it would soon commence a nationwide awareness campaign on the compulsory use of seat belts by all occupants before the enforcement date.
The Corps Public Education Officer, Jonas Agwu, who said this in a statement on Monday in Abuja, noted with concern, the high level of non-compliance among vehicle occupants on use of seat belts.
He said, “The Nigerian motoring public focus on front seat occupants while the rear seats occupants show high level of indifference to this directive, which poses serious challenges to the Corps’ concerted efforts to address the menace of road crashes in the country.”
According to him, as the lead agency in road safety management and traffic administration in Nigeria, the FRSC has renewed its determination to enforce the road culture among road users in the country.
This he added, was in fulfillment of the FRSC 2014 strategic goals which seeks 15 per cent reduction in road crashes and 25 per cent decrease in fatalities.
The Corps commander made reference to section 126(1) which he said, makes it mandatory for all vehicle occupants to use the seat belts while in a moving vehicle, stressing that the benefits of seat belts, if properly used, reduces the severity of injuries by at least 50 per cent, in the event of a road traffic crash as contained in the Nigerian Highway Code and Section 10(4)(ee) of the FRSC Act of 2007.
“Similarly, commuters are also implored to comply with this directive by ensuring seat belts usage by front and rear seats passengers,” he said.