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Congratulations
indeed! That you are reading AH-HAA this second day of the year is
great news: I’m sure you know that some persons couldn’t cross into
2011. And that fact makes me ponder the words of a Christmas card sent
to me by my sector commander at the Federal Road Safety Commission
[FRSC], Jonas Agwu:

“If we drive
responsibly, we will celebrate this season and many more seasons in
2011. Remember, a road crash is someone’s fault: Don’t let it be yours”.

The message is apt,
yet sobering. One is aware that there are over nine million ways to
die; should one not be reducing one’s chances of causing anyone’s death
inadvertently? There is a tendency for us as a people with so much
‘religion’, to accept that it is the will of the Almighty that certain
things happen when they do. One agrees! But one draws the line where we
fail to accept that the same Almighty could never have intended anyone
to die through deliberate, intentional and STUPID acts of omission or
commission that could cause the death of another, inadvertently or
otherwise.

The logic rankles;
the appeal to one to roll over and accept the fact that any death was
intended by God, no matter how the death came about, really gets one’s
dandruff! I will NEVER accept that God intended for a man to jump a red
traffic light, on a Sunday morning at 6.15am when traffic is almost
non-existent, only to murder a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunty
and mentor, walking to morning Mass, as she had done daily for thirty
odd years. NEVER!

Why then do we have
laws that recognise manslaughter and murder, even if by accident? Are
we now saying that there is no such thing as an accident, because no
incident can be an accident, since God sanctions all actions? Is it not
a failure of our institutions to provide the needed succour to those
who suffer as a result of accidents that has made many Nigerians ‘leave
everything in the hands of God’? Would people be leaving simple matters
to GOD if they got justice here on earth?

Weeks ago, I was a
part of a group privileged to watch video footage of gruesome accident
scenes at the FRSC office in Lagos; I urge the Commission to please
show this film on Television as well, especially during this holiday
period, to put things in perspective for us all. I believe we need to
be shocked out of any delusions of grandeur about how insulated we
think we are from fatal road accidents. When you see a headless body
still seated at the steering wheel of a smashed car, you’ll wonder
where on earth he or she could have been rushing to, and if the deal
didn’t still go ahead even with him or her dead!

Pay more attention
people! Was it a bad thing that we got cell phones, for instance? Why
then should anyone decide to answer a ringing phone while driving? If
you crash and die while answering the phone, will the caller not have
someone else to hire? Or will that chore not get done in the end? What
about texting while driving? Done it before? Gotten away with it? So,
you are an expert now? Guy, you were just lucky; your Guardian Angel
may not always be there to shield you.

Jumping the red
traffic light? When last did you do something silly while using the
road? And did you not know you were being stupid?

This is not only
about the drivers, but also about ALL users of our roads. Government
says to protect us, we should wear helmets while riding motorcycles;
but we know too much! We say it disturbs our comfort: doesn’t sit well
on hairstyles or headgear as the case may be. Government says do not
carry baggage on motorcycles, but we say it are conspiring to reduce
our daily income. Don’t drive on the bus lane; we do, just because we
can. Then you are involved in a ghastly accident and vilify the same
government that sought to protect you from yourself, and berate the
inadequacy of the hospitals. Would a hospital have been needed if you
had simply obeyed the law?

Well, you are
reading this Sunday, good for you! Imagine if you were responsible for
someone not making it into 2011, and missing all the drama and
intrigues that Nigerian politics is promising us this year. Most will
die avoidable deaths; recalcitrance, selfishness and negligence of
fellow human beings will be the probable cause. That’s what happens
when no one is paying attention to road safety. You never imagine that
you will have any cause to think about certain things until that same
thing has an unforgettable effect on your life.

Here’s to no hurting in 2011!