Following the successful mega rally in Abuja, Nigerian Breweries and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), held another mega rally on road safety on Wednesday, November 8, at the Ojota New Garage in Lagos.
The Lagos rally, the second of the three rallies scheduled for the year, is part of activities for the 10th edition of the Don’t Drink and Drive Campaign, a road safety awareness campaign organized by Nigerian Breweries and the FRSC.
Speaking at the event, the MD/CEO, Nigerian Breweries, Mr. Johan Doyer, said the campaign is to discourage drink driving and improve safety on our roads. “We commenced this year’s campaign with a mega rally in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Like previous years, this year’s campaign will focus on the improvement of road safety awareness for all commercial drivers and draw attention to alcohol related accidents”, he stated.
Mr. Doyer, who was represented at the occasion by the Corporate Affairs Adviser of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Kufre Ekanem, said that over 16,000 drivers and other road users in 40 cities and towns across the country have directly been engaged since the inception of the campaign 10 years ago.
In his remarks at the occasion, the Corps Marshal, FRSC, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, represented by the Corps Education Officer, Corp Commander Bisi Kazeem, said this year’s ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’ campaign comes at a time when the FRSC is embarking on pre-patrol activities for the ember months’ special patrol.
“The FRSC is working assiduously to ensure that there is a significant shift in the attitude of motorists this year, especially during the yuletide where people have come to believe that drinking on a daily basis as a way of celebrating is permissible. This campaign is a timely reminder that drinking and driving does not only pose a threat to the life of the drunk driver, but also to the lives and property of all road users”, he declared.
Honourable Omotosho Omotayo, who represented the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Alhaji Musa Isiwele, said the association has set up committees to enforce the prevention of sale of alcohol in motor parks across the country. This development according to him, “will contribute towards the success of the laudable partnership between Nigerian Breweries and the FRSC.”
While flagging off the campaign, the acting Commissioner for Transport, Lagos State, Prince Anofiu Olanrewaju Elegushi, represented by Engineer Akinola Johnson, said the ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’ campaign is a welcome development, especially at a time when the Lagos State Government is bent on improving the standard of transportation through its Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT) and minimizing accidents by curtailing the sale of alcohol in motor parks.
The rally was attended by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Tanker Drivers, Luxury Bus Drivers, Tricycle and motorcycle riders, representatives of non-governmental organisations in the transport sector, military and para-military organisations in the country and the public.
In the last ten years, Nigerian Breweries has partnered with the FRSC to organize the ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’ campaign. The 2017 edition of the campaign will move next to Enugu for its third and final rally.
