Jay FM Commentary: Reoccurring Road Accidents at Polo Roundabout in Jos, Plateau State

Today’s news Commentary is on the recurring road accidents at the Polo roundabouts in Jos and the need for the government to take drastic action to avert further re-occurrence ,as written by the News and Current Affairs Department of Jay FM

For the first time after numerous accidents that have claimed several lives and properties ,Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau accompanied by his Deputy ,Prof. Sonni Tyoden and other top Government officials visited an accident scene which occured recently at the Polo Roundabout in Jos,the Plateau state capital .

Since the latest accident involving a tanker happened last Thursday,the manner in which the vehicle crashed at the polo roundabout bore the imprints of several other similar accidents which had become a source of worry to the residents

According to reports ,two persons were killed as the truck carrying fuel lost control and crashed into the University of Jos Veterinary Teaching Hospital in front of the roundabout s resulting into an inferno.

One of the victims said to be the driver was burnt beyond recognition while another person who was rushed to the hospital later gave up the ghost .

The fire ignited when the articulated vehicle spilled it’s content after crashing into the hospital also burnt several buildings including shops in the area, and destroyed equipment worth millions of naira

During his visit to the area, Governor Lalong who inspected the crash site promised to find lasting solutions to the recurring accidents in the area.

According to him, the permanent solution is to find an alternative route for use by heavy duty trucks so as to avoid using the road leading to the Polo roundabouts which is known to have high traffic volume and prone to accidents usually attributed to brake failure and reckless driving

The governor ordered the Commissioner for Transport and other relevant agencies to ensure that they enforce the restriction of heavy duty vehicles along the road during the day till night hours when traffic congestion would have reduced along the route

However,since the Governor gave the directive ,nothing has changed along the road as heavy duty vehicles have continued to ply the road without restrictions .

The government is also yet to make any announcement regarding alternative roads designated for use by heavy duty vehicles

Not only that ,a visit to the accident scene at the Polo-roundabouts also show that the debris of the burnt tanker involved in the latest accident was yet to be evacuated on the road thereby constituting a nuisance and eyes sour to residents and other motorists who daily ply the road.

What manner of concern by the state governor and his promise to find a lasting solution to the incessant accidents at Polo roundabouts if the government and it’s relevant agencies can not even evacuate the remains of the burnt tanker and clear the accident scene for free movement of , vehicles and persons ,many days after it occurred ?

Will the government be able to take drastic action to avert another road accidents before it occurs at the roundabout?

These and many other questions become necessary considering the allegations that have emerged in some quarters that the governor and his team only decided to embark on the trip to the accident scene at the polo roundabout out of sheer idleness and showmanship meant to score cheap publicity

Today ,apart from the ugly situation at the Polo-roundabouts,there are other accident prone roundabouts in Jos and Bukuru metropolis begging for government attention

These include the old airport roundabouts, Farin-gada roundabouts, D B Zang roundabouts ,Zaramaganda roundabouts,Hill station roundabouts , among others .

The daily crowding of vehicles and accidents which occur at these roundabouts almost on daily basis are largely ignored by the government

It is high time the government woke up to it’s responsibility and frontally tackle the challenges being faced by the people on the roads in Jos and other parts of Plateau state

Therefore,government must commit itself afresh to matching it’s words with action so as to avoid unnecessary loss of lives and properties through road accidents.

A stich in time ,they say,saves nine.