The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, on Thursday, appealed to Nigerians to always show empathy and assist road accident victims whenever they come across such.
The Justice noted that such show of concern could help to rescue the victims from danger and death.
Dongban-Mensem, made the appeal while speaking during the 13th annual conference of the Kwapda’as Road Safety Demand Foundation.
The Justice who is also a Special Road Marshal, noted that the campaign for road safety has been on for 13 years in memory of her son, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver.
She added that her son was left to die bleeding because nobody came to his rescue.
Dongban-Mensem said, “Today makes it 13 years since we started our campaigns for road safety in Nigeria.
“We want people to remember that if today there is a road victim and they are not the ones, they could be the ones next. It could be their relatives, and it could be the people that they are concerned about.
“So, we expect that people should remember that fact. That nobody is beyond being knocked down, since our roads are still very insecure.”
“We should also support initiatives like this, you know, to ensure sanity on our roads.
“And by supporting, you can take action by being part of the campaign to inform people. Because there is a lot of ignorance and there is a lot of apathy. People seem to be disinterested when it comes to road safety issues,” she said.
Dongban-Mensem bemoaned the state of the Nigerian roads. She noted that the roads are overused because that is the only means of transportation now in Nigeria.
“When you give information or when you dare to come out and go to the court and give evidence against people that you know have misused and undermined our laws, then you are participating in the administration of justice. And in ensuring that our roads are safe.
“We can take personal commitment by committing to ensuring that we do not add to road mishaps on the road. And we can do this by being properly trained. Take your time and don’t look for shortcuts to getting a driver’s license. Ensure that you’re properly trained.
Dongban-Mensem also called for the establishment of a trauma centre where victims in need can be helped.
She said, “We are actively involved in the fifth standard of road safety, the five pillars.
“We are particularly engaged in the victim part, which is meant to bring support to victims of road crashes.”
source: NAN
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