Reps want sale of alcohol, drugs banned at motor parks

The House of Representatives has called on the federal, state and local governments to stop the sale of alcohol, drugs and psychoactive substances in motor parks across Nigeria. It calls on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to beam its searchlight in motor parks across the country to arrest and prosecute dealers and consumers […]

The House of Representatives has called on the federal, state and local governments to stop the sale of alcohol, drugs and psychoactive substances in motor parks across Nigeria.

It calls on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to beam its searchlight in motor parks across the country to arrest and prosecute dealers and consumers of illicit drugs.

This followed the adoption of a motion moved by Rep. Abbas Adigun at the plenary on Thursday.

Presenting the motion, he lamented that motor parks have become sale points of alcohol and illicit drugs where drivers consume these substances prior to take-off, endangering the lives of passengers.

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He said the Federal Road Safety Commission reports that 90% of road accidents in the country are caused by consumption of alcoholic drinks and hard drugs, among other factors.

Rep. Adigun said, “The consumption of psychoactive drugs and alcohol increases the risk of motor accidents, leading to loss of driving coordination, poor judgement, poor vision and consequently loss of lives and property.

“Alcoholic beverages are freely available and openly displayed at motor parks except for narcotic drugs that are traded and consumed clandestinely.

“Many drivers take alcohol or hard drugs before embarking on their journey simply because they are being sold at the motor parks thereby endangering the lives of passengers and pedestrians.

“It is the global practice that alcohol and other substances that could be abused are limited to the pubs and not in parks and public transport areas.”

The house adopted the motion and urged federal, state and local government areas to immediately ban the sale of alcoholic drinks and other drug-related substances in and around motor parks in Nigeria.

It also urged the Federal Road Safety Commission to extend its services to the parks and carry out random tests for drivers to ensure that they are not under any influence.

The house further urged transport business owners with private parks to discourage the sale of alcoholic drinks in the parks.