The Chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Mr. Ekpo Nta, and the Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Boboye Oyeyemi, have vowed to collaborate in flushing out corrupt marshals from the Corps, saying no Nigerian should be made to pay more than the stipulated fees for the acquisition of a new license or the renewal of an old one.
The duo made the vow during a courtesy visit of the Corps Marshal of the FRSC to the Chairman of ICPC in Abuja recently. The driver’s license, according to the ICPC boss, was an identification document that many Nigerians trusted for the conduct of business, and for that reason, ICPC would collaborate with FRSC in ensuring that those in the business of producing fake licenses were identified and punished.
Mr. Ekpo Nta commended FRSC for adopting modern technology in its operations which had helped to reduce the existence of fake drivers’ licenses and which hopefully would restore sanity to the processes of acquisition and renewal.
Earlier, Mr. Oyeyemi told the ICPC boss that the purpose of his visit to the Commission was to renew ties between the two organisations in order to address two key areas that included corruption and road safety.
On corruption, he said he was seeking the assistance of ICPC in dealing with issues of graft among FRSC officials and therefore requested the assistance of ICPC in monitoring the activities of his men on patrol, adding that FRSC did not condone any form of corrupt practices among its officers, and therefore would not provide cover for any erring officer engaged in corruption
Mr. Oyeyemi offered to train ICPC officers on basic road safety programmes while advocating for exchange partnership programmes between the two agencies to aid investigations especially in data verification.
The Corps Marshal expressed his concern over certain practices by road-users that invariably lead to road crashes. He said vehicles overloaded with goods and passengers as well as vehicles that plied the roads with bad tyres were often the main causes of road accidents, adding that sensitisation of motorists on proper road safety practices had been commenced by FRSC.
Mr. Oyeyemi called on all Nigerians not to leave road safety management to his agency alone. He urged them to comply with all road regulations in order to promote a safer motoring environment in the country.
Those who accompanied the FRSC boss to ICPC included the Deputy Corps Marshals in charge of Administration and Human Resources, Special Duties, Technical Services among other high-ranking officers.