Sanwo-Olu unveils strategies to protect traffic officials from attacks

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State said his government is investing heavily on technologies in traffic control and regulations to protect officials and personnel handling traffic management and vehicle license from attacks. He said a handheld device has been introduced for the state Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) to capture vehicles of traffic offenders without struggling […]

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State said his government is investing heavily on technologies in traffic control and regulations to protect officials and personnel handling traffic management and vehicle license from attacks.

He said a handheld device has been introduced for the state Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) to capture vehicles of traffic offenders without struggling with them.

Sanwo-Olu stated this at the commissioning of the ultramodern VIS headquarters described as a one-stop facility for all transportation and vehicle administration stakeholders in the state.

The governor said recent innovations would protect officials from direct contact with offenders and reduce traffic gridlocks in many parts of Lagos State.

Part of the strategies to “detangle” what he called “destructive breakdowns” of vehicles on Lagos roads is the expansion of operational branches of the Lagos State Computerized Vehicle Inspection Service (LACVIS) from 16 locations to 57 to cover all the local governments and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) of the state.

He said the newly introduced handheld device would completely eliminate contact with the traffic officials as it would take picture of a vehicle which would be remotely sent to a central server and then analysed for evidences of the traffic offence.

He said, “We don’t want our LASTMA officials to be running after vehicles that contravened our laws; we don’t want your uniforms to be torn. We don’t want them to be abused; we don’t want them to be beaten up. That is why we want to introduce the handheld device.

“It will curb corruption and any form of ‘we are not sure what happened.’ Because you are where you are and you can take pictures and once you take those pictures, it would be sent remotely, you don’t need to touch anything and you are not saying anything to the person.”

The governor called for proper maintenance of the facilities and advised the officers to be civil and disciplined in dealing with members of the public who visit the facilities.

He said: “We must also ensure that discipline is our watchword and you must be civil in dealing with members of the public at all times. Remember that government’s infrastructure is made possible through the contribution of all tax payers. I charge you to ensure adequate protection of this facility and enhance and ensure that its operation is seamless.

“This administration will continue to invest heavily in on the on-going transport sector reform with a view to bringing about a transport system that will contribute optimally to the growth of the nation’s economy. It will also ensure that we guarantee safety of our commuters as well as save them valuable travel times on their various journeys.

The Commissioner for Transportation, Dr Frederic Oladehinde, said the edifice accommodates all arms of the Directorate of Vehicle Inspection Service; Head of Division, Planning and Research, Pre – Registration Inspection Unit, Back-end office for the Automatic Number Plate Recognition Enforcement System, Conference Room and Training.

“Also for easy synergy with some sister agencies, the building accommodates Motor Vehicle Administration Agency (MVAA) and the Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) to provide quick, prompt and quality One Stop service delivery to the public at large,” he added.