Experiencing Road Safety Management in Field Commands

By sani ABDULLAHI ‎

DCC Sani Abdullahi and some Senior FRSC Officials

‎It's barely a year that I got posted from field command, precisely, Lekki Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) where I was the Unit Commander before my last promotion and posting to the National Headquarters Abuja. As an officer that has had field command experience before the posting and having stayed for over a decade at the National Headquarters, my posting to Lekki Unit Command in Lagos State was with mixed feelings: First, even though the posting was going to give me opportunity of meeting new personnel of the Corps and people outside, I had only previously been in Lagos at the commencement of the job long time ago and therefore, wouldn't know how the environment would receive me. Secondly, the time lag between when I was active in field commands operations and assignment at the National Headquarters was over a decade.

Nevertheless, I set out for the duty tour to the "Centre of Excellence" with a mindset of one that was going to utilise the enormous experiences gathered over the years working at the Headquarters under successive Prime Commanders. The rest is now history as I went to Lagos, saw and Conquered before returning to the National Headquarters last year.

‎It was with that mood that I saw the recent assignment given to me and the Staff Officer (Media) in the office of the Corps Marshal, Chief Route Commander Kabir Ibrahim by the Corps Marshal for us to go and interact with personnel of some selected commands across the southwest South-South and Southeast geographical zones of the country as most welcome. The assignment which started with Osun and Lagos States had a follow up, Delta, Anambra and Enugu States to round up.

‎‎While the Osun State command interaction with the personnel took place successfully in Osogbo, it was preceded by the flag off of the EMBER Months campaign/Town Hall meeting with relevant stakeholders during which the State Governor, His Excellency, Senator Ademola Nurudeen Adeleke was represented by the Deputy, His Excellency, Prince Kola Adewusi. At Osogbo, we found the warm reception, hospitality and enthusiasm of the Sector Commander, Corps Commander Adegboyega and his personnel most outstanding. And from the impressions on their faces and how they related closely and freely with us during our stay in the command, we left there with positive impressions of a command whose personnel are united, peaceful and resourceful.

‎‎We also observed during the flag off program which included the launching of the Command's Magazine, The Gong that many retired senior officers of the Corps including Deputy Corps Marshal Kayode Olagunju; Assistant Corps Marshal Rotimi Adeleye as well as Deputy Corps Commander Idris were in attendance which demonstrated the spirit of solidarity between the past and present officers of the Corps in the State.

‎‎As we headed to Ojodu, Lagos State the next day in continuation of the assignment, I was looking forward to seeing my good old friends, colleagues and senior officers who were there when I served in the state for 3 years till last year and I was not disappointed by the warm reception and excitement that welcomed us to the hall in company of the Sector Commander, Corps Commander Kehinde Hamzat who was to introduce me at the interactive session.

‎‎He was so overwhelmed by the familiarity of the faces of the personnel who were seated for the interaction that he said, there was no need introducing me, but added quickly that they shouldn't see me as the Unit Commander Lekki as they used to know me but as an aide to the Corps Marshal who is performing strategic functions in the office of the Corps Marshal.

‎‎The interactive session went smoothly; participating personnel opened up by asking questions to clear any areas of doubt after which questionaires were administered on them. There were different private consultations, expression of goodwill and offer of prayers for the Management which we held after the open session. We therefore left the state with positive impressions of the commanding officer and his personnel.

‎‎In order to complete the second part of the assignment within the South-South and Southeast geopolitical zones, we later visited Asaba, Awka and Enugu States where we also had robust interactive sessions with personnel of the commands after which questionaires were equally administered on the participating personnel.

‎‎The visit not only make it possible for us to meet with old colleagues in those commands, but provided opportunity of having frank interactions that revealed their mindsets about the FRSC and its leadership at the National Headquarters both through verbal presentations and the questionaires.

‎‎As we returned to Abuja from the last command in Enugu State where the Sector Commander, Corps Commander Franklin Agbakoba participated actively in the interactive session with his personnel in demonstration of his knowledge of operational matters, we left positive impressions of the ongoing physical development in the command. And as we reflect on the assignment, we felt the need to share certain takeaways from the interactions and staff's disposition in all the commands. First is the realization that road safety personnel across the commands have high sense of espirit de Corps and see themselves as a united family with tendency to easily build friendships the moment they come across one another.

‎‎They are also easily mobilized with high morals that make them to keenly follow up with activities at the National Headquarters. In addition, they were seen to be excited and enthusiastic about meeting a team from the office of the Corps Marshal and therefore, opened up on issues of concern to them without reservations which showed their levels of confidence in the possibility that their voices would be heard.

‎‎Furthermore, the apathy among personnel arising from their helplessness in being physically attached during mob actions as well as the vulnerability of their infrastructure is gradually giving way to a new hope especially with the ongoing amendment to the FRSC Establishment Act 2007 which would not only address the ambiguity of areas of operational jurisdiction but that the existence of arms squads as provided for in the amendment could serve as deterrence for any violent attacks as have been witnessed in the past.

‎‎We also observed that FRSC personnel across the commands are particularly happy with the policy on harmonization of ranks of converted officers and adherence to the policy on regular promotion exercise implemented by the current Management which duly addressed issues of stagnation and backlog on promotion. Most importantly, staff in the field commands are generally happy with the commitment of Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed to addressing staff welfare needs which they see reflected in the reforms carried out in the Staff Cooperative, Housing Scheme and Post Service Scheme (PSS).

‎‎Lastly, while they yearn for more welfare benefits, they also understand the budgeting challenges of the Federal Government which are not peculiar to the FRSC but applicable to the various agencies of the government.

‎‎From what we could discern during the outings, FRSC has rapidly metamorphosed from an organization whose personnel used to be suspicious of themselves with wide interactive gaps between Headquarters and field commands staff to a new era of friendship, comradeship and trust in themselves as well as the leadership at the National Headquarters.

‎‎May God give good guidance and protection to Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed to continue to build on the present solidarity amongst the personnel at all levels. Ameen.

‎Abdullahi is the Deputy Corps Commander in charge of Strategy in the office of the Corps Marshal

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