Faith, Duty, And Road Safety

I love Pastor Paul Enenche of Dunamis International Gospel Centre. I also love other Pastors and Imams. Of all these men of God, Pastor Enenche’s impact, based on my knowledge, is quite impactful. Pastor Paul may not remember that our paths crossed, but I am honoured to have processed his first driver’s license when I was barely a year old in the Federal Road Safety Corps.

When destiny made me Sector Commander in charge of the Federal Capital Territory Command, Pastor Paul invited me to the old church site at Area One, Garki, for an impactful service dedicated to impacting the lives of commercial motorcyclists, popularly called ’okada’, who were causing mayhem in the FCT.

During the service, crash helmets were distributed freely to riders numbering in the hundreds, along with other safety materials, while prayers were offered for them. When he mounted the pulpit to preach, he read a scripture from the Holy Bible, which has become my road safety reference material from God Almighty. It was from Ecclesiastes: 7:16-17

Sometime this year or thereabouts, I learnt that Pastor Enenche donated a patrol vehicle to support the Corps’ patrol activities in the FCT.His antecedents, as I understand them, paint a picture of what the Christian or Muslim faith should be about: impacting society. This piece, however, is not about Pastor Paul. It is about a tragedy that has befallen both the Church and my Muslim brothers and sisters, although the trigger for this piece is the recent tragedies that claimed the lives of Christian travellers.

Before I dwell on the subject, please allow me to celebrate a friend and brother, Okokon Okwong. Our friendship dates back to over twenty-five years. What I can say is that he is a workaholic and a deeply religious brother who is also deeply sacrificial, and loves travelling to honour friends and family, and to attend events such as burial ceremonies to honour brethren in the Christian faith, as well as others, irrespective of their faith.

During his last trip to one of the States in the Southwest, in the company of other Church members, the journey went smoothly. So too did the burial ceremony. However, the return journey was tragic as it ended in anguish due to a road traffic crash, which occurred, claiming the lives of the driver and a seventy-five-year-old woman.

When the crash occurred, he put a call through to me and requested that operatives of the Federal Road Safety Corps assist with the rescue. I did as I was obliged, but not without breaking down on the unfortunate incident, which, from my analysis, was avoidable, just like most road traffic crashes.

A few weeks after the tragedy, I read of another tragedy; the death of four women in a similar manner. Like the first, the news hit me with the cruel, sudden force of a head-on collision: four female members of a church, traveling together for a burial, lost their lives in a road traffic crash. Their journey, likely one of faith and fellowship, ended in a mangled wreck on our highway.

It is a tragedy that cuts deep, leaving a congregation in mourning and a nation once again confronting the grim reaper that stalks our roads. While the specific details of the crash are unknown, the broader context is painfully familiar and demands more than just our grief. It demands a reckoning

Both incidents are a heartbreaking microcosm of a national emergency which the Federal Road Safety Corps has battled over the years through innovative and creative interventions to redress the trend. Whether the fatalities involved one or more, these are not just statistics. They are human; fathers, mothers, children, citizens and we are reminded daily that members of the various faith communities’ deaths should tingle our conscience on the need to do the needful.

The scale of this crisis represents a monumental failure of duty of care. On its part, the Corps has noted that most of these crashes are preventable, with driver fatigue, overloading, distracted driving, and excessive speeding among others identified as leading causes.

But beyond the human cost, there is a crippling economic one. Nigeria is estimated to lose about 3 per cent to 5 per cent of its total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually to road traffic crashes, a cost borne in property damage, medical expenses, and lost productivity, with thousands of injuries and fatalities.

We literally bleed our future on our roads with the majority of these crashes occurring on intracity roads, often involving motorcycles which account for about 57percent of cases in some studies. Yet, as the tragedy involving the church members shows, passenger vehicles on intercity routes are far from immune, particularly when safety protocols are ignored.

I know I have been at the forefront of advocacy focusing on religious organisations, be it in churches or Mosques. The involvement of a church group in this tragedy brings the issue of road safety into sharp focus. Within the context of religious organisations in our clime, the Church and the Mosque are pillars of community life. They are sanctuary centres for social gatherings, and for many, second homes. With this influence comes a profound responsibility. When a religious organisation organises a trip, be it for a retreat, a convention, or a charity mission, it is not just planning an event; it is taking on the duty of care for the lives entrusted to it

A religious organisation bus should be a vessel of hope and service, not a potential hazard. Yet too often, we see these vehicles overloaded, driven for long hours without adequate rest for the driver, or in disrepair. We know that factors like loading mixed goods, animals, and passengers together have historically been dangerous. While such buses may not carry livestock, the principle of avoiding all forms of overloading and distraction applies.

The question must be asked: Do our religious institutions have a comprehensive transport policy? Is there a mandatory inspection before any journey? Are drivers vetted for their qualifications and sobriety? Is there a strict limit on driving hours with a clear schedule for rest? In the absence of these measures, we are complicit in the risks we ask our members to take. We cannot place all the blame on the condition of the roads or the recklessness of other drivers. We must look inward at our own operational standards.

Religious organisations such as Churches or mosques have always been a voice for the voiceless and a beacon of hope. It is time for it to become a champion of road safety. This is not just a logistical issue; it is a moral and spiritual one. The FRSC has robust advocacy campaigns targeting worship centres as a broader strategy to improve compliance, which is a welcome step, but it should not be the end of the conversation.

We must move from being merely the audience for a campaign to being active participants in the solution.

What then should be the framework for action? Let us start with audits and policy. Every religious organisation’s transport fleet-whether one bus or a hundred-should undergo a safety audit. They should implement a strict, written policy that mandates daily vehicle checks (tyres, lights, brakes), enforces a zero-tolerance policy for alcohol and fatigue, and establishes a pre-journey briefing for all passengers on safety protocols and mandatory compliance with road safety rules.

The second is training. We must professionalise the role of a driver for a religious organisation. It is not enough to be a member of the congregation with a driver’s license. Drivers should undergo certified defensive driving training, while passenger safety should be treated with the same sanctity as the worship itself.

Next is advocacy. With thousands of congregations across Nigeria, religious organisations wield immense social capital. This tragedy should galvanise a nationwide movement. Religious leaders can use their pulpit to preach a Gospel of road safety-a message of life, safety, and responsibility. We must speak up against reckless driving, encourage passengers to speak up, and promote a culture of safety that extends from the house of worship to the home and the broader community.

Like I said at the onset, the four women who died, others who have died, and those who might die if nothing concrete is taken by all religious organisations’ leadership were more than just statistics in a crash report. They were mothers, wives, daughters, sisters and pillars of their faith and home. Their deaths are not just a loss to their families and church but a loss to a nation. While we cannot bring them back, we can honour their memory by ensuring their sacrifices become a catalyst for change.

The current global road safety challenge, which also affects our climate, is a collective failure, and it demands a collective response. The government and the FRSC have their roles to play, but civil society, and particularly religious organisations, must take the lead in protecting their own members. Let the tragedy of these four women be the moment we decide that our journey of faith will not be marred by preventable tragedy. Let us take responsibility, not just for our safety, but for the safety of every soul we invite onto our buses. The greatest testament to their lives will be the lives we save.

I conclude by borrowing the conclusion from my piece ‘Flowers for Deviants’, by doffing my hat for you as you tinker with my submissions. I salute you for choosing to be noble. May your kind increase. May your example spread. And may the rest of us who have a date with death detour and copy your examples of patience, safe driving, courtesy, decency on the wheel, respect for other road users and the sanctity of life and your Gospel of safety. May others choose safety and cut down deaths and injuries on our roads.